Culls
by Autumn-Fire-Zone1
Summary: First 7 chapters have been rewritten. Each choice made has a consquence either good or bad. Rosie was chose to be the savior while Harry was pushed to the side. No pairings at this point. Adopted from Silver Angel 7
1. Voldemort's attack

_**The Culls**_

Culls meaning to remove someone or something deemed worthless or inferior.

I am rewriting the first 7 chapters I have published.

This story was based on and inspired by Silver Angel 7's story The Results of Our Choices. I adopted the story from Silver Angel 7 with her permission and will try to uphold Silver's standards while putting my own twist to it.

Summary: AU. Each choice and decision you make has consequences that can be either good or bad. Like how Rosie was said to be the defeater of Voldemort when it was really Harry's doing. Which lead to Harry's mistreat him that would shape the person and choices Harry made in the future.

Warnings: This story may contain child abuse, violence and gore, coarse language, homicidal and suicidal thoughts and actions, and slash. This story may also eventually contain Grey!Independent!Intelligent!Harry. Currently rated T. I may raise it later, and tell me if you think it should be raised.

Disclaimer: All characters and places belong to J.K. Rowling. I own nothing.

/'_Parseltongue'/ _

"_Emphasized words and spells"_

"Normal speech"

Chapter 1: Choice

Dusk was setting upon the vast acres of Godrics Hollow, bringing with it a light haze that clung low to the earth. The setting sun off in the distance provided just enough light so that the tops of the trees in the nearby forest were luminous, and cast long shadows upon the impressive grounds.

The day was October 31st, Halloween. Voldemort decided that on this most magical of nights that he would attack the Potter's home and be rid of the Prophesized child for good. There were only three children that it could be Rosie and Harry Potter and Neville Longbottom. Voldemort was more than certain that it was the Potters so went after them but sent the Lestranges to deal with the Longbottoms as a precaution. It took a second for him to break through their poor excuses of wards before walking into the house. He was surprised that only a low powered witch was standing between him and the children. With a quick killing curse she was dead.

Harry had been sleeping nicely when he suddenly woke up. Something didn't feel right but he didn't know why. He sat quietly in his bed when an unfamiliar noise, an unfamiliar voice echoing throughout the room. Harry looked around quizzically to see where the voice was coming from, but the only other people in the room was his sister, and Rosie was asleep and he knew it wasn't their babysitters Kathy's voice. The voice, wherever it was coming from, seemed to be getting louder and Harry could now distinguish words/_'It'sss time…time to kill…time to dessstroy him…__'/_ The voice stopped and was replaced with laughter that was unlike any he had heard from his sister, Mummy, or Daddy. It was filled with no mirth or happiness, and it made him shiver.

Then there was silence before the door to the room he shared with Rosie opened. A hooded figure with red eyes made his way over to where his and Rosie's beds wehere. Harry was just glad Rosie hadn't woken up or she would be screaming her head off.

Finding the children, Voldemort took a minute to study each child. Rosie, the girl was asleep which surprise him, was on the chubby with messy red hair and freckles. She wasn't very cute. Then Voldemort looked at the boy, Harry. The child was awake and looking at him not in fear but curiosity. Instantly, he knew this was the Prophesized child. The child might be on the small side and weak looking but he could see the raw power within him. Unlike his sister the boy was a beautiful child with delicate dark brown hair that looked almost black hair and these intense green eyes that resembled the killing curse.

Looking at the boy, "I actually feel regret having to kill you but I can't allow you to live and one day destroy me. But I will give you as painless a death as possible" with that said, Voldemort raised his wand and pointed it at Harry. All Harry did was look up at him with those intense eyes as if he knew what was going to happen.

Green eyes locked with red eyes for a moment before Voldemort cast the killing curse. As a jet of green light flew from the tip of the wand hitting the child in the forehead. The boy let out a gasp and a cry that echoed throughout the room before he fell still.

Still smirking Voldemort turned to finish off the other child, when he looked upon the boy who was previously lying still, only to see him become engulfed in a sphere of eerie green light and the lithe body lifted into the air. The globe of light grew until the sphere exploded. A powerful wind started up and magic surged around the room as the green light gathered into a powerful ball of energy and rushed towards the cloaked man. Not being able to avoid it, Voldemort was hit directly in his chest.

A horrifying scream of pain was forced from Voldemort's lips and Harry, who was now himself again watched the horrifying scene before him. As the light faded, Harry watched as Voldemort's flesh began melting away exposing muscles and tissue under skin that soon dissolved away. As it was no longer safe to occupy his body, Voldemort's soul or what was left of it was ripped from his body. A dark shadow with red eyes was all that was left of Voldemort as he fled the room but not all of him went. A piece of his soul was ripped from the other and attacked itself to Harry.

Harry's make went on the defensive trying to rid, itself of this foreign intruder. His magic reacted badly causing the house to shake, a nasty wind to fill it tossing furniture, destroying walls and the roof. A fire started downstairs and debris flew everywhere even the piece of the ceil that cut a V into Rosie's left cheek.

Harry was writhing on the bed as his magic tried to inject the soul fragment of Voldemort but the soul fragment feared its destruction to much and was able to infuse itself with Harry's soul. Weaken by reflecting the killing curse, Harry could stop it.

With the wind dying down, Harry checked on his sister. She was fine except for a small cut on her left cheek. At the moment his head was too foggy to comprehend anything, and his was very exhausted with a bad headache that was causing him problems. The headache was centered around on area on his forehead that the killing curse had hit him and Voldemort's soul fragment entered. Raising one of his small hands to his forehead to see if he could rub the pain away, he felt something wet and warm. When he pulled his hand away, it was covered in what he recognized as blood. Harry started to panic. He was injured! And no one was around to fix him! Harry remembered his mother always saying it was important to heal a cut as soon as possible so it wouldn't get infected. With this in mind, he placed one hand over the cut and thought of healing it, thought of what the smooth skin usually felt like and what he usually saw in the mirror. Harry felt a tingling sensation run through his fingers and into the cut a moment before the pain stopped. He ran a finger over it and felt nothing there. Relief was what Harry felt.

The wind had died down and the house had stopped shaking a few moments later. The few pieces of debris that had been floating around in the air settled back down onto the floor. Harry was still considerably frightened over the events that took place moments beforehand, and he could feel fatigue creeping up on him.

He wanted to do nothing more than to go to sleep but the smoke that started to fill the room. He needed to get them safety. Harry didn't know how but one moment they were in their bedroom and the next they were sitting in the front yard. Through half lidded eyes, Harry heard a few 'pops' followed by the appearance of his parents and Albus Dumbledore. A tired smile crossed his face as his parents rushed over to them and picked them up. Harry snuggled into the safety of his father's arms. Too content too have his parents with him, he didn't noticed Albus Dumbledore eyeing Rosie's cut cheek with interest or how his parents seemed to focus on the cut as well.

Feeling that everything would be alright now, Harry surrendered to the sleep and hoped that the bad man was just a dream, that all of this was a bad dream.

A/N: There's the first chapter. Please leave a review and I will try to answer any questions you may have. No flames! Constructive criticism only.


	2. Keep quiet

_**The Culls**_

Culls meaning to remove someone or something deemed worthless or inferior.

I am rewriting the first 7 chapters I have published.

This story was based on and inspired by Silver Angel 7's story The Results of Our Choices. I adopted the story from Silver Angel 7 with her permission and will try to uphold Silver's standards while putting my own twist to it.

Summary: AU. Each choice and decision you make has consequences that can be either good or bad. Like how Rosie was said to be the defeater of Voldemort when it was really Harry's doing. Which lead to Harry's mistreat him that would shape the person and choices Harry made in the future.

Warnings: This story may contain child abuse, violence and gore, coarse language, homicidal and suicidal thoughts and actions, and slash. This story may also eventually contain Grey!Independent!Intelligent!Harry. Currently rated T. I may raise it later, and tell me if you think it should be raised.

Disclaimer: All characters and places belong to J.K. Rowling. I own nothing.

/'_Parseltongue'/ _

"_Emphasized words and spells"_

"Normal speech"

Chapter 2: The lie begins and a Christmas Tale

After welcoming their youngest to the land of the consciousness, Lily and James sat down in two beside Harry's bed, with Rosie sitting happily upon James' lap. After a few quiet moments, Lily and James proceeded to tell Harry about the defeat of the Dark Lord. They gleefully explained that when Voldemort had tried to kill his sister, the spell had rebounded off of her and hit Voldemort instead. James then pulled Rosie's hair away and showed Harry the V-shaped cut upon his sister's right cheek and explained that this was where she had been hit with the killing curse.

Harry blinked in confusion after hearing this as he vividly remember Rosie getting that cut from falling debris and not from Voldemort. In fact, Harry was sure of it! And Harry knew for a fact that the dark wizard had only pointed his wand at him and only attacked him never paying any attention to his sister. He remembered the feeling of the curse hitting him perfectly! So that meant _he _not Rosie was the defeater of Voldemort. Harry was going to protest against what his family was telling him and explain what really happened, when he realized that they wouldn't believe him. They were so wrapped up in the belief that Rosie was the prophesized child that he knew they wouldn't believe him.

When Harry had looked up at his mother and father's beaming faces as they watched Rosie atop his father's knee, he decided to stay quiet and allow them to believe Rosie was the _'Chosen One' _. He didn't really like the idea of being praised for nearly murder.

So Harry remained quiet.

He noticed that his sister saw nothing wrong in taking the lime light. She seemed to love it.

Over the next few months, Harry noticed many changes in the Potter household. Like how instead of sharing a room, Rosie was given a much bigger room than Harry's new room and it was closer to their parents. When Harry would call for one of his parents, he would be lucky if they even answered his call but if Rosie even whimpered James and Lily would be by her side instantly. Before Voldemort's attack, his parents treated each child the same but now it was very obvious they favored his sister over him. She was constantly bathed in affection and attention, while his parents neglected him in favor of the girl-who-lived as the papers affectionately dubbed her. It seemed his parents felt that he was old enough to take care of himself and so felt it unnecessary to spare him a thought.

The temptation to tell his parents the truth was always there, and usually the strongest when he would awaken from a terrifying nightmare about _that_ _night_ to have only a small, plush dragon for comfort or when Rosie was given something more special. But Harry still refused to breathe a word to his parents, or anyone else for that matter.

It was a cool and calm December evening. Large, fluffy snowflakes fell gently from the star specked sky, covering the earth in a thick blanket of white. If you were quiet enough, the sound of Christmas carols and loud laughter could be heard, floating from distant houses as they celebrated the joyful and expectant day of Christmas eve. As the months went by, his parents were becoming extremely wrapped up in Rosie and her recent celebrity status. They rarely had time for Harry, making him feel very bitter and angry about the situation.

A lone, minuscule figure stood out in the cold night air, clad in a small pair of black boots and an undone winter coat. Green eyes gazed out upon the significant amount of land that made up the front yard of the Potter's home. It was chaos inside his house as his parents hurriedly made last minute preparations for the guests that were due to arrive any minute. Harry had decided to wait outside after the second time his father had tripped over him and he had gotten a verbal lashing.

Now Harry stood out in the cold and waited with anticipation for the two forms of his Dad's best friends, Uncle Remus and Sirius, to appear through the night air. Harry adored his two 'Uncles'. They both were such characters, and Harry admired how their presence always managed to lift his spirits. Unfortunately with Sirius' Auror duties, and Remus' travels, it wasn't often Harry got to see his Uncles, especially together. So Harry was very excited about this Christmas since they would be staying for a few days, and it would be their longest visit yet.

Harry was pulled from his musings when two distant, yet distinguishable '_cracks'_ were heard from the other side of the simple wooden fence that surrounded the yard. Harry's eyes lit up with childish hope as he watched two shadowed figures walk through the gate and into the moonlight where their faces became visible.

"Uncle Remus! Uncle Siri!" Harry ran joyfully towards the men at such a fast pace that he had no time to slow down before crashing into Remus' legs and hugging them tightly.

a character, and Harry admired how their presence always managed to lift his spirits.

Remus let out a small chuckle after finding his balance once again and bent down to pry the animated five year old off of his legs and up into his arms. "Well, hello to you too!" Remus smiled.

"Oh? Where's my hug?" Sirius' bottom lip stuck out in a playful pout.

Harry started to squirm a little in Remus' arms so his torso was twisted and his arms reached out for Sirius. Sirius lifted Harry out of Remus' arms gently and into his own embrace with the green-eyed child. Harry wrapped his arms tightly around the blue-eyed man's neck and squeezed tightly for a few seconds before letting go and leaning back slightly.

"What are you doing out here all by your self, kiddo?" Sirius asked as he ruffled Harry's hair.

Harry smiled slightly at the sign of affection and replied quietly, "Mummy and Daddy were busy."

"Do they know where you are?"

Harry gave a small shrug of the shoulders. He doubted very much that his parents knew where he was right now; he doubted even more that his whereabouts for the last hour or so even crossed their minds.

"Harry, you know you need to tell James and Lily where you're going," Remus gently reprehended, "I bet they're worried about you."

Harry was quiet but gave a small nod. Remus smiled down at the two-year-old to show that he wasn't mad and there were no hard feelings. Harry smiled back.

Sirius ruffled Harry's locks again before suggesting that they go inside, "I don't know about you two, but I'm chilled to the bone…"

"Maybe it's because you're just wearing a t-shirt," Remus muttered good-naturedly.

"…and am dying for one of Lily's freshly baked gingerbread cookies," Sirius finished, ignoring Remus' comment.

Remus and Harry agreed, though the latter a little hesitantly. Harry didn't really want to go inside, for a number of reasons, but the main one was because of Remus and Sirius. He loved his Uncles dearly, and didn't want them to start ignoring him like his parents did. The green-eyed child doubted that it would happen but he never thought his parents would turn against him. It would be the first time that either of his uncles would see Rosie since the attack a couple months ago, and with his sister's newfound status as 'the-girl-who-lived', Harry wouldn't be surprised if he was completely forgotten by his father's friends.

Harry tightened his hold on his uncles' arms slightly as he, Remus, and Sirius traveled up the snow covered path towards the front door. Right when Remus had his hand out, ready to rap the door to announce their presence, a contorted image appeared through the disfigured panes of glass. Barely a second later, the door swung open to show the beaming face of Lily Potter.

"Remus! Sirius!" she exclaimed before leaning over and placing a friendly kiss on both of their cheeks. "I'm so glad you two could make it! I see you got here in one piece." She looked over at Sirius with a knowing smile as she said the last bit.

"It happened one time Lils! One bloody time! Jeez, splinch yourself _once_ and they never let you live it down," Sirius muttered with an annoyed tinge to his voice, but the twitch of his lips gave him away.

Lily gave a small snort before ushering the two men inside. "James is just upstairs helping Rosie put on her new outfit. Oh, you should see her…The perfect little lady…," Lily drifted off as she walked into the living room. Sirius sat Harry down on the wooden bench in the foyer before quickly helping him remove his winter coat and boots, and then removing his own. Remus did the same.

Harry grabbed a hold of Remus's larger hand as he, Sirius, and Remus walked into the Christmas wonderland that was the Potter living room. Holly, mistletoe, and paper snowflakes were hung everywhere, and not a table went without a decorated, miniature Christmas tree. Small, randomly placed snowmen danced around the room as they magically swung to the Christmas carols playing in the background. The blazing fire danced to its own majestic tune as it flared in the Potter's immaculate fireplace, casting the room in a soft and cozy lighting, while the tall, lush and beautifully decorated Christmas tree sat in one corner, twinkling away

The men and child walked over to a red, plush couch and sat down in it right as Lily walked in with a silver platter full of her famous gingerbread cookies. As soon as the platter hit the table, Sirius had leaped out of his chair with an uncharacteristic squeal of

"Cookies!" before crouching in front of the bowl and stuffing them in his mouth at a rapid pace, one after the other.

"Whoa, Sirius! You're going to choke yourself! Slow down!" Lily scolded with a smile.

Sirius smiled sheepishly through a mouthful of gingerbread and swallowed thickly before grabbing a moderate size handful and sitting back down.

"So how have you two…" Lily was cut off by a clamoring sound coming from the stairs and a second before a little girl with messy, red hair and dull brown eyes appeared in the doorway leading from the foyer.

"Siri! Remus!" Rosie squealed before running at a fast pace towards the couch they were sitting on. In her hast to wiggle herself in between her Uncles and Harry, who was sitting on the edge of his seat in-between Remus and Sirius. Harry was pushed off of the couch and landed with a small '_thump_' on his side, head missing the corner of the table by mere inches.

"Rosie! Watch yourself! You pushed Harry right off of the couch," Sirius reprehended.

"Be more careful next time," Remus added as he got up to help Harry back onto his feet.

Harry was grateful for his Uncles' support, since he knew his mother wouldn't have come to his rescue. She would have placed the blame on Harry somehow, whilst denying her golden child had done anything wrong. For the most part, Harry was not disappointed.

"Remus, Sirius, it was just an accident. Harry shouldn't have been sitting so close to the edge. Besides, Rosie didn't mean anything by it, did you honey?" Rosie shook her head back and forth in response to his mother's question, then leaned over to Sirius and wrapped her arms around the man's side in a tight hug.

Sirius hugged back, though absentmindedly so, as his thoughts were slightly occupied by Lily's response to what just happened. Looking over at Remus, who was now sitting on the couch once again, this time with little Harry perched on one of his knees, Sirius could tell that the lycanthrope was pondering the same thing.

Their musings were interrupted though when James appeared in the doorway. "Padfoot!" James declared overdramatically and spread his arms out wide as if to hug said man from across the room, "Moony!" He repeated the action towards his other best friend, "So nice of you two to join us." James sauntered over to the couch in a very suave manner, acting as if he were some high-class snob. The Santa Clause hat that was perched atop of the infamous Potter locks made the whole scene rather humorous.

Remus and Lily just rolled their eyes at the man's antics, while Sirius let out a bark of a laugh. "Jamie-boy, I thought you were done with trying to impress Evans here." Sirius raised a hand to indicate the smiling redhead.

James grinned at this and started walking towards Lily. He wrapped one of his arms around her waist and pulled her close before pressing his lips against hers in a gentle, quick kiss. He then turned around so he was facing his fellow Marauders and kids, as he started walking over to them, with some witty comment on the tip of his tongue, when he tripped over the rug, and landed flat on his face. Everyone laughed.

And so for the next hour and a half or so, the three marauders chatted with Lily about topics that ranged from their jobs to Quidditch. The two kids sat and listened to the adults talk for a few minutes before they got bored and went to play with their toys. Lily excused herself at random intervals so she could prepare dinner for the night. Soon, the smell of roast wafted throughout the house, causing Sirius to actually drool, which caused his friends to laugh.

At about 7:00 that night, Lily had ushered everyone into the dinning room to take their seats. After she had helped Rosie up into his chair (and Harry had scrambled into his own) she sat down and with a flick of her wand, the food appeared.

It was quite a sight. The food looked absolutely amazing, and as they all dug in, any one of them would preach about the tantalizing flavours of the roast, carrots, mashed potatoes, corn, or anything else that completed the picture atop the Potter's dining table.

Dinner was quite an enjoyable affair. The talk was light and pleasant, and the food was delicious and filling. Harry, for the most part, enjoyed himself dearly. It was the first time since the Dark Lord had attacked their home that he actually felt like a part of the family. His Mum and Dad even started a small conversation with him, just like old times. By the time dinner and desert was finished, Harry was practically all smiles, even despite his small stomach ache.

The group of people settled down in the living room once again, their stomach's full, and their smiles content. They chatted away about random topics, until the matter of the Dark Lord came up.

Rosie had been pulled onto James's lap as Lily and James explained what happened few months previous.

"Lily and I left the children with Kathy because of an Order meeting. We would have preferred to have taken the children with us but we were going to be only gone a short time and they were already asleep"

Lily cut in, "We were in the middle of the Order meeting when word of the Longbottoms being attacked reached us and we quickly headed to the Longbottoms' residents in hopes of aiding them,"

"When we got there it wasn't a pretty scene. Frank and Alice had been under the torture curse for so long they had been driven insane. Poor Augusta had be hit by the Dream Devil curse and Neville was suffering from being under the torture curse as well" said James.

"Thankfully, he hadn't been under the curse for too long but the healers weren't sure of any future side-effects he would suffer because of it" said Lily. "We were heading home when we were alerted that the wards at our home had fallen meaning that Peter had betrayed us. We rushed home only to find poor Kathy dead and our home destroyed."

Lily continued the rest of the story, "Fearing the worst, we were relieved to find them both alive. Dumbledore said that when Voldemort tried to use _Avada Kedavra_ on Rosie, it bounced off of her and hit him instead. See the scar on her right cheek…" James moved Rosie's hair,"…that's were she was hit with the curse."

"Voldemort isn't gone for good though," Remus added quietly.

Lily turned to look at him with woeful eyes. "No he isn't. Dumbledore says that one day Voldemort will return, and when that day comes it will be up to our little Rosie here to stop him."

James looked down at his daughter who was quietly playing with a plush Gryffindor lion atop her father's knee before speaking, "Poor little girl. She has all this responsibility on her shoulders, and at such a young age."

Lily, James, Remus, and Sirius all gazed down at the brown-eyed child. Lily and James pondered about what was ahead for their little hero, while Remus and Sirius tried to comprehend what they were just told.

"What I don't understand is, if Rosie was the prophesized child, how come Harry is still alive?" Remus pondered quietly aloud.

Lily and James exchanged a look of confusion then glanced at Harry, then at Remus, then back at each other.

"We just figured that Voldemort went after Rosie first never getting a chance to kill Harry." Lily replied with a reassured look upon her face.

"Oh," Came Remus's reply, though it didn't exactly sound like he fully believed that story.

Remus had known Harry and Rosie since the day they were born, and from the first moment Remus had held little Harry in his arms, his keen senses had sensed something within the child, and he recognized it for what it was right away. It was power. Raw, undiluted power, hidden away within the small child's soul, the core of his magic. And when Remus had held Rosie for the first time, it felt exactly like what holding a baby would feel like. There wasn't anything more special about Rosie, than there was about any other baby out there. But Harry was different. And it was for that reason that Remus wasn't completely sure he believed the story his fellow Marauder and his wife had just told him.

"Well," James rubbed his hands together for a quick second, "It's getting late and by the looks of it," James looked down into his lap where Rosie's head was drooping in fatigue,

"I think it's bedtime for our little hero here."

Slowly and gently, James scooped the half asleep figure into his arms and gently stood up, as to not arouse his daughter from her state of half awareness. Lily stood up also, and followed her husband and daughter toward the stairs. Harry, who had been sitting cross-legged on the floor with his plush dragon in his lap with his head sleepily lying on top of it, got to his feet drowsily at the sight of his parents retreating backs, and followed them up the stairs, leaving Remus and Sirius by themselves.

The two remaining Marauders watched this happen in slight shock. It was almost as if James and Lily had forgotten Harry was even in the room. But that couldn't have been it. James and Lily always treated their children equally, showing one no more love and attention than they did the other one. That's how it had always been, and James and Lily were always careful too keep that balance in order to avoid rivalry or anything along those lines. So the question that kept popping up in both men's minds was why had they just ignored Harry?

It appeared the title of girl-who-lived had affected the Potter family more then they were willing to acknowledge.


	3. badly aimed snowball

_**The Culls**_

Culls meaning to remove someone or something deemed worthless or inferior.

I am rewriting the first 7 chapters I have published.

A/N: Just incase I didn't mention it in the last chapter, Remus and Sirius are Harry's godfathers, and Dumbledore is Rosie's godfather. I don't think this fact is really important for the plot of the story, but just so you know…

This story was based on and inspired by Silver Angel 7's story The Results of Our Choices. I adopted the story from Silver Angel 7 with her permission and will try to uphold Silver's standards while putting my own twist to it.

Summary: AU. Each choice and decision you make has consequences that can be either good or bad. Like how Rosie was said to be the defeater of Voldemort when it was really Harry's doing. Which lead to Harry's mistreat him that would shape the person and choices Harry made in the future.

Warnings: This story may contain child abuse, violence and gore, coarse language, homicidal and suicidal thoughts and actions, and slash. This story may also eventually contain Grey!Independent!Intelligent!Harry. Currently rated T. I may raise it later, and tell me if you think it should be raised.

Disclaimer: All characters and places belong to J.K. Rowling. I own nothing.

/'_Parseltongue'/ _

"_Emphasized words and spells"_

"Normal speech"

Chapter 3:

To say it was early when Sirius first heard the clambering of a small set of feet padding through the halls, squealing "It's Christmas! It's Christmas!" would be an understatement. James, Lily, Remus, and himself had stayed up to about midnight the previous night, catching up and chatting about things that were inappropriate for Rosie and Harry to hear, therefore he was tired. A gorgeous man such as himself needed his eight hours of sleep, after all. When he rolled over onto his side, so he could see the green numbering on the digital clock, he was not pleased to see that it was only 5 o'clock in the morning.

After coming to the conclusion that going back to sleep was probably not an option, Sirius decided that getting up was the only other choice. The ebony haired man swung his legs over the side of his bed and threw the sheets off of his torso, while letting out a loud yawn. After rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he got up and made his way to the door, with visions of coffee cups dancing in his head.

After making his way down the stairs and into the kitchen, he was greeted with the sight of three half awake adults and two overly excited children.

"Uncle Siri!" Rosie squealed as she jumped out of her seat at the kitchen table, where she had been indulging in a plate of bacon and eggs, and ran over to her uncle for a good morning hug. "Guess what! Guess what!" the energetic six year old was practically bouncing. Sirius dimly wondered how the little girl could possibly have that much energy at a quarter past five in the morning, but pushed the thought to the background before replying with a smile, "What?"

"St. Nick was here!" At Sirius' mock incredulous look, the child continued, "He was! He really was! And you should see all the things he left! There's a pile this high," Rosie put her hand at first at about half of Sirius's calf level, then slowly raised it to about his knee level, before the child continued in her ramblings, "And there's presents for you and Uncle Remus and Mummy and Daddy and Harry and me! Mummy and Daddy even said that since I was such a good girl this year and was so brave against you-know-who, St. Nicholas may have even brought me more gifts then usual!"

Sirius gave an unsure glance to Lily and James, before returning his gaze and smile to the animated brown-eyed child and stating overenthusiastically, "Wow! That _is_ exciting news, isn't it?"

The six year old smile grew and her bouncing increased somewhat as she replied with, "The best!"

Sirius walked over to the counter and poured himself a cup of his beloved coffee. After adding two spoonfuls of creamer and sugar, he sat down at the kitchen table in-between Harry and Remus, and took a gulp from the cup.

"Sleep well?" Remus questioned with a smirk after observing his friends obviously sleep deprived state.

Sirius gave a noncommittal noise through the coffee cup that was still held up to his mouth, before lowering it and replying, "Like a rock. Until the lovely parade came trotting through the halls," Sirius let out a sigh and rested his head on his hand as he took another swig of coffee.

Remus let out a chuckle, and patted Sirius on the back in a sympathetic way, "I hear you, Sirius, I really do."

After a few minutes of quiet chatter, the six occupants in the kitchen moved their slowly awakening bodies (excluding the children, who practically skipped) into the living room, where they would open their presents. When Sirius saw the small mountain of presents that surrounded the glorious Christmas tree, his eyes widened to saucers. Sure, he had seen James and Lily place them there last night, but it was dark, and Sirius had no idea there were _this_ _many._ Fatigue completely forgotten, Sirius ran over to the tree and swiftly kneeled in front of the presents and picked one up. After reading the name, and obviously not finding what he wanted, he set it back down and picked up another one. After two more gifts had been examined, he exclaimed a little "aha!" and picked up the gift he had been eyeing and sat down on one of the couches.

Lily laughed, "I swear Sirius, you're as bad as the kids!"

"Hey! I resent that!" Sirius said indignantly as he tore into the package with such vigour, that pieces of wrapping paper flew all over the room. After it was all off, he was left holding a circular Christmas container, which he promptly opened. After emitting a high-pitched squeal, very much like the one that escaped him the day before, Sirius dug into the gingerbread treats Lily had given him, popping two at a time.

"Sirius!" Lily warned.

With a sheepish grin, the ebony haired man replied, "Sowy!" through a mouth full of cookies, and slowed his pace of consuming the gingerbread delights.

The next hour past by in a blur of excited exclamations, laughs, taunts, and jokes as the group of six ripped through gift after gift until the only one who still had any left was the girl-who-lived, herself.

The fact that Rosie already had a noticeably larger pile of presents than anyone else in the room, including Harry, did not escape the grasp of Remus and Sirius. Though the two may have disapproved of the unfairness of how James and Lily so blatantly favoured their eldest child lately, the animagus and lycanthrope kept these thoughts to themselves. It was not in their place to tell their friends how to raise their children, and they doubted that their observations over the last day or so would be welcomed, even if they were true.

Harry had had a great time opening up his gifts. He had gotten many things from chocolate and magical games to clothes and books. The green-eyed child had only been slightly hurt when he had seen the significantly larger pile of presents that sat beside his sister, but when Sirius and Remus had offered to show him how to play Exploding Snap, he practically forgot about it.

Half an hour later, Rosie had finally finished opening the last gift (a toy snitch that fluttered around the head of whoever activated it until caught). Everyone had then ventured upstairs and back into their designated rooms to get dressed and prepare for the day ahead of them.

After Harry had struggled to slip on a fresh pair of pants, shirt, etc, the dark-haired toddler had walked back down the stairs and into the kitchen, where he took a seat on one of the stools at the kitchen table. He was the first one down the stairs, so he had decided to wait for the rest of his family (Sirius and Remus included) to finish with their freshening up.

Not even a couple of minutes later, a loud commotion, followed by a mirthful outcry of laughter, was heard from the top of the stairs. Harry quickly turned his head to see what all the noise was about. Rosie trotted down the staircase in-between their parents, hands held, as they laughed and swung their daughter from step-to-step as they climbed down the staircase. Their faces were alight with so much happiness and love, that it could have brightened any room. It was the perfect picture of the perfect family. And Harry's heart ached. He looked away.

To see his family like that, so joyful and affectionate hurt him dearly. It wasn't the fact that his family was so happy; it was the fact that he was denied that feeling. The feeling of happiness that could only be supplied with the care of a family. The feeling of love, of being wanted, needed, and protected from the outside world. It was these things that Harry missed most about his life before the attack, it was times like these that he found himself wanting to tell everyone the truth. But Harry would always remain quiet in the end, and today was no different.

A few minutes later, Remus and Sirius had finally shown up downstairs. Just the sight of his Uncles improved Harry's mood quite a bit. He knew that the two men still cared about him even though Rosie was the one who supposedly saved the wizarding world. He could tell by the way they talked to him, like they loved him. Knowing this made the child so happy. He had feared that they would start acting like his parents had, and to know that he was wrong, and that they still truly cared about him relieved the green-eyed child immensely. He really did love his Uncles.

Harry was just about to call the two older men over when James spotted them and called them over to check out his new Cleansweep before Harry could even open his mouth. Sirius had practically ran over to the broom, his what some would call _'unhealthy'_ obsession with Quidditch kicking in, while Remus gently declined the offer. He had never been one for the sport, most likely because anything more than four feet above the ground gave him the willies.

Seeing that his one of his godfathers had declined his father's offer, Harry quickly called him over. Remus smiled at the invite and walked over to the table Harry sat at and pulled up his own stool before engaging the child in a small conversation.

For the rest of the morning, everyone decided that it would be nice to just relax around the house, enjoying each others company and trying out the new knickknacks that everyone had received for Christmas.

When noon arrived, Lily called everyone into the dinning room for sandwiches and tea (or juice in the children's case). They had all finished up fairly quickly since the meal wasn't a heavy one, and then moved their festivities outside onto the front lawn where a massive snowball fight took place. The teams were Harry, Remus, and Sirius versus Rosie, James, and Lily. The only rule was no magic.

As soon as everyone had gotten outside, the war had begun. At first, the action had been only minimal, with the odd snowball thrown at the opposing team, as both sides made a pile of ammunition and a suitable fort to duck behind. But soon enough, the game began. Snowball after snowball was thrown, pegged, tossed, and hurled across the yard.

Laughter, playful taunts, and the crunching of snow rang through the air like a small orchestra to their festivities. The game went on for what seemed like hours, and Harry enjoyed every second of it. It was like a repetitive task that changed every time. Roll, pack, throw, hide, roll, pack, throw, hide. Harry threw with vigour, pausing only to find a new hiding spot or restock. He did not aim, he only threw, snowball after snowball. Therefore, when a loud cry pierced the air, it took Harry completely off guard.

Harry turned swiftly in his spot to see what had caused his sister's tears and came face to face with the scene of Lily holding Rosie in her arms as she held tightly onto her eye while Lily tried to shush her by rocking her back and forth. Instantly Harry felt a pang of worry rush through him and was just about to start walking over to see if his sister was alright, when a piercing yell echoed through the air. "Harry James Potter! Come here this _instant_!"

Harry was puzzled, but knew not to disagree with his father, especially when that particular voice was used. He quickly strode over to his father. "Why would you do this?" James thundered, "What in the name of_ Hades_ possessed you to attack your sister like that? Giving her a black eye, what the hell was that for! That was completely uncalled for! I don't want any excuses, I don't want any complaints. Go over to your sister and apologize, then move that sorry butt of yours up to your room! I don't even want to see a _glimpse_ of you till dinner! Do I make myself clear?"

"Wha…but Daddy, I didn't…I didn't mean…"

"I said do I make myself _clear_!" James roared. Harry shrank a little in response, but nodded his head quickly, seemingly unable to find his voice at that moment.

Remus quickly intervened, "Now James, I'm sure it was just an accident! There's no need for this, besides its Christmas…"

James shot the lycanthrope a glower, "Remus, you're not by any chance telling me how to punish my child, are you? Because last time I checked you had none."

"James, stop acting like such a dick! Harry did nothing wrong, and nor did Remus! So stop attacking them!" Sirius defended.

"Sirius, Remus, j-just forget about i-it, please," Harry stuttered quietly finally finding his voice. The telltale prickling of tears started to form behind his eyes, but he pushed them away, not wanting to let them fall. He remembered a time when he could cry freely in front of his parents. He would be instantly engulfed in a hug and told that everything would be alright. And it always was. But he knew now that tears would bring no sympathy from his parents and everything was not alright. So why cry when he didn't need to?

Harry walked over to where Rosie was still sobbing her heart out in her mother's arms and whispered a small, "I'm sorry," before walking away and up to the house, trying to ignore the glare his mother was giving him.

He walked into the foyer and struggled out of his hat, gloves, coat, boots, and snow pants, before continuing up the stairs and into his room, all the while pondering about what had just happened, what his father had just said. This only resulted in the prickling behind his eyes to become harder and harder to ignore.

After arriving in his room, he closed the door tightly behind himself and fell onto his bed. He pulled his dragon against his chest and finally let the tears flow.

Harry didn't understand why his father had been so angry. He didn't mean to hurt his sister, it just happened! The whole time he had just randomly thrown all his snowballs, not aiming or trying to hit a specific thing. He just threw. The whole time he had done this and by accident one of the balls hit his sister in the eye. It wasn't on purpose! He didn't mean it! So why had his Daddy been so angry? Why had his mother looked at him that way? Why had they treated him like that? Harry was just so confused.

"James, what the hell is wrong with you?" Sirius yelled furiously. Sirius was angry. No, scratch that, he was beyond angry. He was pissed. And one glance at Remus told the animagus that he was no better off. What James had said to the green-eyed child both men had come to love was completely out of line. You couldn't just speak to a five year old like that; with so much spite and with such an accusatory tone. Harry was such a good kid, and if anyone bothered to look past his title of 'the-brother-of-the-girl-who-lived', they could see what a blessing he really was. Harry didn't deserve this treatment, and it broke Sirius' heart every time he thought of how resigned Harry was to follow his father's orders. But it also fueled his anger, which he promptly took out on his best friend.

"It was an _accident_, James! And you're acting like Harry planned it all out! Cooked up the whole idea when we were all sleeping last night or something! He didn't do it on purpose; anyone who wasn't blind could see that! Harry was half way across the yard; I'm surprised it even reached you!"

"Are you kidding me, Black? That snowball was _aimed_! I actually saw him do it! And you're telling me that it was an _accident!_? Are you crazy? Harry deserved that punishment. He's not going to get away with every goddamn thing he does just because it's Christmas! The boy needs to learn discipline. He had no right in hurting his sister like that," James argued.

"James, I know that Harry didn't purposely hit his sister, and I know you do too. And Harry's not a bad child, he's never been…" Remus was interrupted.

James glared daggers at his friend, "Remus, just shut up! I really am in no mood for one of your rants right now," James spun around swiftly so he was then glaring at Sirius, "The same goes for you too, Sirius! I don't want to hear it! My God, what the hell's the matter with you two? Both of you are acting like it's some sort of crime to defend your own child!" James yelled.

Sirius gave an exasperated sigh at his friend's words. He really couldn't believe how dense he could be sometimes. "We never said anything like that! It's just your acting…"

Remus cut off Sirius with a quiet statement, "Harry is your child, too, James."

There was silence after this as James stared dumbfound at Remus for a few seconds in confusion. He shook it off though, and trying to make up for his short absence of retorts, snapped, "Well no shit, Remus! Of course Harry's my child! What the hell are you talking about? That has nothing to do with anything!"

Remus sighed, "Yes, actually it does." James looked taken aback, but Remus continued,

"James, you and Lily both have been favouring Rosie a lot lately, sometimes it's like you forget Harry is your son all together. Take right now as an example. You won't even consider that Harry hit Rosie accidentally, but if they were to switch places you wouldn't believe anything but it being a small mishap."

"Okay, one, what are you talking about Remus! Lily and I love Rosie and Harry both, with all of our hearts! And two, that's because Rosie would never do something like that!"

Remus shook his head tiredly and raised a hand to rub his temple. He could feel a headache coming on. He ignored his friend's last comment for the sake of saving himself from a full-blown migraine. "James, I've seen the way you two have been lately, and it certainly doesn't seem like the love is shared evenly among your children. Just look at this morning! When I came downstairs Harry's pajamas were on backwards, his toast was burnt and his little hands were covered in peanut butter. This all indicated that he had dressed himself and made his own breakfast at the age of _five_, whereas Rosie, who is _six,_ was eating a perfectly cooked dish of bacon and eggs made by her mother. Now, it may have been just me, but it certainly _looked_ like you were favouring Rosie, and things weren't like that five months ago when I last saw the children."

Silence filled the air once again as James pondered his response carefully. A few seconds passed by, and finally James let out a tired sigh, and when he responded, he talked in a slow, quiet voice, as if he were considering each word carefully. "Remus, we love our kids equally, we really, truly do. I love Rosie, and I love Harry. And that's all there is to it. It may appear like Rosie is getting a tad bit more attention then Harry lately, but you have to understand; Rosie did something extraordinary a couple months ago and saved countless lives. This girl is a legend and a hero to the whole wizarding world, and there is only a small amount of time left before the world reclaims their hero to be their savoir once again. And until that happens, Lily and I are going to do our damnedest to give this child the best childhood she could have asked for. Unfortunately, we can't spend as much time with Harry because of this, but it is a sacrifice we have to make. We'll make it up to him when he's older."

Remus remained quiet as he studied the man in front of him, for the first time noting the man's weary appearance. Raven locks that had always been messy by nature, seemed to be more so now than Remus could remember. Those hazel eyes that had always been alight with a hidden sparkle now seemed dull, although far from lifeless. Bruises sagged underneath them, revealing the many sleepless nights he had suffered through lately. There was a slight downturn of his lips, which had always been set in a smile, smirk, or that goofy grin for as long as anyone could remember. There was only one word to describe the man's demeanour, and that was tired.

For the first time, Remus realized that the revelation of Rosie's fate was affecting James, and most likely Lily, too, a lot more then they were letting on. While they appeared to be all smiles and the perfect, happy, loving parents they had always been, it was now apparent that it had all been a show, masking their inner turmoil for the sake of the children. He understood that both Lily and James were under a fair amount of pressure right then, and were doing what they thought was best for the current situation. But the lycanthrope also understood that while Lily and James tried their best to go on like nothing was out of the ordinary by lavishing Rosie with affection and the childhood of her wildest dreams, they were denying Harry the childhood that rightfully belonged to him.

Even knowing all this, Remus nodded his head showing that he heard and was not going to retort to what James had just told him. The pressure was high in their lives right then, and Remus wasn't about to add to it by pointing out what they were doing wrong. James didn't need that right now, neither did Lily.

A relieved grin spread across James' face at the inclination of Remus' head, and some of the fatigue upon his shoulders seemed to lighten. He walked over to where his friend was standing and clapped a hand on his back. Remus smiled at the sign of 'no hard feelings' and then looked over to where Sirius stood silently in the foot of snow.

The animagus was unmoving, his face a mask of no emotions. Remus knew that his friend was deep in thought right then and probably thinking about a hundred miles per minute.

He recognized this face from the many years they had spent a Hogwarts together, and he knew that Sirius was really confused on how he should act right then. Was he supposed to take the easy way and act like this argument over Harry never happened? Or was he supposed to take the difficult approach and continue yelling over an issue that would never be resolved? For the sake of everybody, Harry included, Remus prayed that Sirius took the first approach. The animagus would be no good for Harry if he wasn't even allowed to see him anymore.

A few seconds passed and James and Remus watched the man in anticipation, waiting for his response anxiously. Finally, Sirius gave a small shake of his head, almost like he was trying to dislodge thoughts from his mind, and gave a grin towards his friends, his face relaxing somewhat. Remus let out a sigh of relief, but the nervousness still lingered in the back of his mind. He knew Sirius wasn't okay with everything that had just happened, he was just setting it aside to deal with latter.

After the ebony-haired man had walked over and James had gave him a clap on the back, the proposition to go back inside arose, which they all agreed to do, seeing as how Lily had taken Rosie inside sometime ago.


	4. Nightmare and goodbye Moony and Padfoot

_**The Culls**_

Culls meaning to remove someone or something deemed worthless or inferior.

I am rewriting the first 7 chapters I have published.

This story was based on and inspired by Silver Angel 7's story The Results of Our Choices. I adopted the story from Silver Angel 7 with her permission and will try to uphold Silver's standards while putting my own twist to it.

Summary: AU. Each choice and decision you make has consequences that can be either good or bad. Like how Rosie was said to be the defeater of Voldemort when it was really Harry's doing. Which lead to Harry's mistreat him that would shape the person and choices Harry made in the future.

Warnings: This story may contain child abuse, violence and gore, coarse language, homicidal and suicidal thoughts and actions, and slash. This story may also eventually contain Grey!Independent!Intelligent!Harry. Currently rated T. I may raise it later, and tell me if you think it should be raised.

Disclaimer: All characters and places belong to J.K. Rowling. I own nothing.

/'_Parseltongue'/ _

"_Emphasized words and spells"_

"Normal speech"

…_Words…_ Dream

Chapter 4:

Two relatively quiet hours had passed since the grand climax of the snowball fight, and everyone appeared to be much calmer then they were during the screaming fest. Remus was currently lounging in one of the comfy, plush chairs scattered around the Potter's living room, conversing with James and Sirius about random topics of interest. Both men were quite calm and serene compared to their uptight attitudes out in the yard, which was a relief for Remus, who also felt quite peaceful and comfortable settled in the chair with a cup of warm tea resting on the arm. Lily had excused herself about a half-hour ago so she could prepare the Christmas dinner for that evening. The familiar tantalizing fragrance lolled in the air, foreshadowing the magnificent meal that lie ahead for them. Rosie sat at a small child size table placed in the living room, drawing some unidentifiable figure to hang up on the refrigerator door for the world to see. Her eye was only slightly bruised and swollen, but there was no pain for that had been taken care of with magic. All and all, Remus thought it was quite the enjoyable scene; that is, until his eyes rested on a picture of Harry on the mantelpiece.

Instantly, he felt sadness enter and spread throughout his being. Everyone seemed so happy and content down here, surrounded by the cheerful and festive decorations, and it pained him to know that Harry couldn't enjoy this experience with the rest of the household. Harry deserved to have this happy memory implanted into his young mind. He should have been downstairs with everyone else, not upstairs, in his room, doing whatever little children did when they are terribly upset. He wished dearly that he could just run upstairs and grab Harry into his arms and bring him to the living room. He wished dearly to see his smiling young face illuminated by the glow of the fairy lights on the tree while he happily and joyfully drew some type of Christmas scene with his sister. But he knew he couldn't do that unless he wanted to have another argument with James. And that wouldn't make Harry smile at all.

"Remus…Remus….Remus!" Remus jumped in his chair when someone grabbed his arm and cussed aloud when he spilt the still scolding tea onto his pants. After muttering a quick cleaning charm he looked up into the sheepish looking face of Sirius Black. "Sorry about that...didn't mean to make you jump. You were just off in your own little world there, and Lily called us for dinner."

Remus looked up to see that James had already stood up and was smiling down at the scene in front of him. It amused the man whenever Remus was spooked by someone or something. It was always worth a good laugh, at the unfortunate expense of their lycanthropic friend.

"It's okay, don't worry about it," Remus absently muttered as he half-heartedly glared at his friend, causing said man to give a small chuckle.

"The meal smells amazing, hurry up and let's go eat!" James rubbed his hands together and licked his lips slightly as Remus rose from his chair, no longer glaring.

"Sounds like a good idea, but shouldn't one of us go get Harry?" Remus stated, and felt a minor pang of annoyance when James' smile faded at the mention of his son.

"Oh yeah…umm, maybe one of you two would like to do it? It's just, I think he may appreciate it more if you got him, plus I should really help Lily out with Rosie…"

Remus ignored the growing pang of irritation towards his friend, and replied, "I'll go get him, he is my godson after all."

Sirius was about to object to that, and offer to go, when a small set of feet was heard scurrying towards him. Sirius looked over to see Rosie running right at him. He prepared for impact, though it never came. The energetic girl stopped right in front of him and started to pull on his arm. He knew Rosie was just a child, but he couldn't help the mild worry that the girl was going to tug his arm right off.

"Uncle Siri! Come look, come look! You gotta see the pie Mummy made! It's HUGE! And apple!" She tugged harder.

Sirius bent down and lifted the child into his arms. He let out a sigh. The girl had a good grip. "Okay, okay, let's go! You just point the way!" Rosie lifted her arm and pointed a finger towards the door leading to the kitchen.

Sirius gave one last fleeting glance towards Remus and headed for the direction pointed out by his niece in his arms.

Remus watched the retreating back of his shaggy haired friend with minor regret. Remus knew that Sirius would have liked to come with him to see how Harry was doing, but the man would just have to wait till Harry came downstairs.

"Well, I'm going to go get Harry. We'll be with you guys in a few minutes, alright?" James nodded his head and started walking towards the kitchen. Remus turned around and headed up the staircase. He padded through the hallways silently and stopped just outside his godson's door. He stood quietly for a few seconds, trying to catch a noise of some sort that would indicate what kind of state the child on the other side was in. But there was no noise. Remus slowly creaked open the door.

The room was silent and appeared vacant at first glance, but after studying the lump in the sheets a little more carefully, they appeared to be moving. Remus quietly made his way over to the bed and gently sat down on the edge of it. He placed a comforting hand on the quivering lump and piercing jade eyes peeked up at him. Remus was relieved to see that they were neither red nor puffy from recent tears, although he could tell that at one point they had been shed. Remus slowly pulled off the blanket covering Harry's head so he could get a good view of the young face. His heart ached when he saw the fear and betrayal that was still written on the youths face from his father's words. Remus reached out a hand, and not knowing what else to do, took Harry's smaller one into his own. They stayed like that for about a minute, with no words being spoken, and Remus silently offering the young boy some support. Eventually though, the time came for Remus to brake the silence, which he did reluctantly.

"Harry, we can go down stairs now," Remus gently said.

Harry's response was barely above a whisper, but Remus caught every word, "Is Mummy and Daddy still angry at me?"

Remus shook his head slowly from side to side, "No, they aren't mad, but they do want you and me to come downstairs so we can eat supper. Your Mum even made a gigantic apple pie, your favorite."

Harry smiled slightly at this statement, though the werewolf could tell he still wasn't quite sure. Remus watched as the boy started to wiggle out of his cocoon of sheets and slowly stood up from his bed. Remus also stood up from the bed and held out a hand for Harry to take. Instead of grabbing onto it though, Harry walked over to his Uncle and held up his arms with a pleading look upon his small face. Remus instantly crumbled under the youths request and lifted him up into his arms. Holding Harry securely, yet still loose enough for the child to twist his body slightly, Remus headed out the door and down the stairs.

Dinner past by rather slowly for Harry. It felt awkward for him to be sitting there with his family, when he knew they were still angry with him. No matter what Remus said to reassure him, he knew that they were still upset. Harry had always had a gift of somehow knowing an emotion someone was feeling, and right now he could feel annoyance and anger coming from his parents. Although it was greatly overshadowed by the positive emotions they were feeling right then, like humour from a joke someone would say or happiness from the whole scene itself, Harry could feel their displeasure for him buried under all the other emotions. This made the whole meal not very enjoyable, even with the apple pie.

After dinner they all moved into the living room and kept busy doing random things. When 8:30 rolled around Lily took Rosie up to bed, with Harry once again following behind with no complaints. He had long ago become accustomed to getting ready for bed by himself. He trudged up the stairs absently, and impulsively turned left down the hallway towards his bedroom. He quickly changed into his pajama top and bottoms and turned off the lantern by his bed with a turn of a knob. After making sure the door to his room was open a crack to emit a sliver of light from the hallway, he crawled under the warm blankets and stared out the frost covered window as he awaited the blissful unconsciousness that accompanied his dreams. Little did the small child know that as he drifted off into the realm of sleep, it would be filled with anything but bliss.

_Darkness…cold…freezing emptiness. Harry could feel chill creeping throughout his tiny bones. Spreading to every inch of his being. Where was he? He didn't know. Bugs were crawling under his skin. Squirming. And wiggling. It didn't hurt. But he could feel it. He could feel them. But he couldn't see them. The darkness was too great. But there was a dot. And it grew. And grew. And grew. And Harry could see a picture. It was moving. People were moving. Running. Screaming. Pleading. Begging for salvation. It was an anguished symphony chorusing through the houses. The streets were alive with the sound. There was fire. Dancing and swaying to the music. Engulfing everything in its path. Like the bodies of the deceased. And some of the living. There was so much blood. It was everywhere. Lots and lots of the crimson liquid. Puddles. Everywhere. Coating the ground. The trees. The people. Everywhere._

_The bugs started to crawl faster. It itched. Harry scratched._

_Cloaked shadows moved around. Conducting the symphony with their sticks. And their red lights that made the people scream. And convulse. And bleed. And their green lights, making them silent. And empty. And gone. Harry had seen the green light before. Somewhere. But where? _

_The bugs squirmed even faster. It itched. Harry scratched. And scratched._

_The chaos continued. So did the screaming. And bleeding. And running. And shouting. And cursing. Lights flashed. Red and green. People fell. The fire consumed. The noise was deafening. And painful. His ears hurt. But so did his heart. But nothing could be done. He couldn't stop the cloaked shadows. Or the pain of the innocence. Or the pain in his heart. People plead for help. Begged. He could help! He could save them! But he couldn't move. But he could watch. And suddenly all was quiet. The chaos continued. But a shadow stood out from the rest. Laughter filled the air. Dark, unfeeling, mirthless. Evil. He looked at the shadow. The cloak revealed nothing. But then the shadow tilted its head up. The creature had red eyes. Like that man. Harry shivered. _

_Suddenly he was in the picture. In the chaos. The sound returned. He looked around. Death. Destruction. Fire. Pain. He ran to the nearest person to help. A burning feeling was filling his veins. White fire. He needed to stop their pain. But the person ran through him. And so did the next. And the next. He let out a cry. And suddenly the sound was gone again. Harry looked at the red eyed shadow. It smiled at him. Harry shivered. It lifted its hand, palm directed at him. Harry's feet left the ground. He sped through the air. And then he was in the man's arms. A hand wrapped around his neck. And tightened. Harry gasped. The man leaned forward. His breathe tickled his ear. He would have laughed. If his forehead didn't hurt so much. And the bugs under his skin would stop moving. And the hand around his neck wasn't so tight. _

_The shadow whispered into his ear. Its voice was that of the purely wicked. He couldn't help but listen closely. _

"_You're mine." The words burned into his skull._

_The hand around his neck released. And he fell to the ground. Shaking and shivering. And scratching. And clawing. The bugs just wouldn't stop squirming! And his head hurt so much. He wanted to hold it. Help make the pain in it go away. But he couldn't stop scratching. The scene was fading. All he could see were blurred figures. And all he could hear were echoed screams. But soon those faded too. He shut his eyes tight. His head hurt so bad! And the bugs kept crawling and crawling. He couldn't take it. _

_So he screamed._

Remus and Sirius had decided to head up to bed earlier that night than the one before.

Both decided that it would be a good idea to get a good night's sleep that night since they were planning on catching the Knight Bus early the following morning, and would need all the rest they could get before that traumatizing experience.

The two marauders were quietly trudging up the stairs, immersed in hushed and light conversation when a piercing scream echoed down the staircase, ringing through their ears, causing both their hearts to clench painfully in their chests. They knew that voice anywhere, whether in the form of a quiet whisper or an earsplitting cry. It was Harry.

Both men snapped into action, sprinting up the remaining stairs two at a time and racing down the hallway like their heels where set on fire. Once they reached the door that lead to the room of destination, both men flung it open and entered the darkened room. They stopped in there tracks, mouths opening in small, silent gasps at the scene in front of them.

Moonlight filtered in through the iced window, providing a slight stream of silvery light that fell gently on the convulsing, whimpering boy writhing amongst the bed sheets that had been tangled around the youth' legs, exposing his upper half. The pajama top had been ripped open, exposing the child's stomach, and with it a gruesome sight. What looked like deep and bloodied scratches ran up and down the toddler's forearms and abdomen, oozing a dark substance out onto the youth's torn and broken finger nails, which appeared to be the culprit of the deep abrasions. The child's mouth was opening and closing pitifully, emitting soft gasps and pleas that were left unheard in their hushed tone. Arms and legs flung everywhere, hands leaving more and more deep incisions on the child's already torn skin. The boy's head flung back and forth, side to side, in a desperate attempt for the pain to stop, and the two men could see dark bruising encircling the child's neck and already turning a sickening bluish purple.

They stared on in horror for a few seconds before their bodies were able to catch up with their minds screaming '_Do something!'_, and they were finally able to run over to the shaking bed. After a few failed attempts of calling out the child's name, Sirius jumped on to the bed and tried to hold down the convulsing youth. Harry started to beat his small fists into Sirius' large form, leaving bruises in their wake. The animagus just ignored them, and started calling out Harry's name, trying to bring him back from whatever hell he was going through. Remus grabbed onto Harry's hands in a gentle, yet strong hold so they could no longer attack Sirius, and joined said man in the chanting of the erratic boy's name.

A minute passed. And then another. It most have been at least five minutes before the child finally stopped his seizure-like behaviour, and finally fell to a crumpled heap under Sirius, who promptly got off. The small body curled into himself, quivering and shaking.

The room was eerily quiet compared to the raucous that filled it only moments before. The only sounds that could be heard were the heavy breathes of the older men and the

occasional sob emitted from the bent form on the bed. Slowly, Remus gently sat down beside the quivering boy and laid a hand atop the shoulder. There was an almost immediate response. Harry flung his injured arms around the surprised man and held on to his side as if for dear life, mumbling nonsense words like '_So cold'_ and _'Helpless'._ Unsure about what else he should do, Remus wrapped an arm around the quivering shoulders and pulled the boy in tight, whispering that it would be okay and that it was just a nightmare, although he himself highly doubted that. Harry seemed to have disagreed with what he was saying too, for Harry's arms instantly retreated and he started shaking his head back and forth rapidly.

"No! No...It wasn't a dream…it wasn't a dream…," he sobbed out, and seemed to get lost in his own thoughts as his eyes glazed over.

Sirius sat down on the other side of the out-of-it child and shook his shoulder slightly, knocking him back to consciousness. Harry's eyes seemed to focus back on Sirius, his lower lip quivering slightly as he held back more sobs. Seeing this, Sirius pulled the child to him and gave him a loving hug, trying to strengthen the child through this motion. Still holding on tightly to the boy, Sirius asked quietly, "What happened?"

Harry was quiet as he seemed to think about the 'dream' he had just had. He mumbled quietly into Sirius' shoulder, "It was cold… and there was a man and all these shadows. A-and there were people screaming, and they were asking for help. I tried to help them! I really did! I tried so hard…b-but I couldn't," he looked up fearfully at Sirius before exclaiming almost frantically, "You have to believe me Uncle Siri! I tried, I tried, I tried! But I-I…just…" He broke off with a fresh wave of sobs.

Sirius' heart ached horribly within his chest at the slight of the broken down innocent child. He held on to him tighter, mumbling reassuringly that it wasn't his fault, that he couldn't help it, and that it would be okay.

Eventually Harry calmed down, emitting only a few hiccups here and there, with only a few stray tears still streaming down his face. Remus, who was now sitting close to Harry's side, wiped them away. A minute or two passed in silence before Remus broke it by asking to see Harry's arms. Harry looked at him questioningly through his puffy eyes, before lifting them up for the adults to see, an expression of shock spreading across his face before quickly changing to realization.

"I was…itchy," he ran a finger over the incisions, and to the foremost surprise of the two men, the cuts started to close up. Soon, the only thing left were faint white lines, which also faded away into the skin, making the surface smooth and unmarred once again.

"Ha-Harry, what did you just do?" Remus asked in awe, taking the boy's arm onto his lap, and studying it for himself.

Harry looked at him unsurely before replying in a small voice, "I just healed it. It hurt," a worried expression spread across his features as he asked quickly, "Is that bad?"

Remus shook his head back and forth before giving Harry's little hand a reassuring squeeze before releasing it gently onto the youths lap. "No. No it isn't. It's just a little...surprising is all," Remus caught Harry's brilliant eyes with his own before asking,

"Have you ever done this before? Healed yourself by just thinking it?"

Harry was about to nod his head and go into an explanation of how he healed the cut that red eyed monster gave him, when he stopped in his tracts. If he were to tell his Uncles about that cut, then they would know that he had been injured that night as well, and by the hand of the evil wizard, no less. This was not what Harry wanted. Just because he had a nightmare, didn't mean he had to tell everyone his secret about that night. He was stronger than that.

Instead, Harry told them that he had fallen out of a tree a month or so ago and had healed the bruises on his cheek and leg so his parents wouldn't find out about it.

As soon as Harry had said these words, Remus knew it was a lie. Harry was very graceful when climbing trees, and though it was believable that he had had a small mishap and didn't want his parents to know about it, the fact that he would have climbed a tree at the end of November, when the branches were cold and icy, was not. Harry was hiding something, and the lycanthrope had a feeling it had something to do with the night of the attack. The problem was he had no legitimate evidence to back up his theory, so he opted to stay quiet about it. For now.

Remus looked down at the now calm form of his godchild, resting his head tiredly against Sirius' side, eyes closed in fatigue. He looked up into the sculpted face of his best friend and caught his eyes, both men silently agreeing that it was time to put Harry back to bed.

Sirius shifted his form slightly so he was able to lay Harry's drained body so it was lying flat on his bed, head drooping against the pillows. After tucking Harry into his covers, making sure he was secure and warm with his red dragon tucked under an arm, he stood up off of the bed, and walked over to the door where Remus stood waiting for him.

Following the man out the door, he was just about to close it lightly, when a quiet and slightly timid voice broke the silence that had enveloped them.

"Uncle Siri?" Glowing green eyes peeked up.

"Yeah kiddo?" He responded softly.

There was a pause. "The man in my dream h-had red eyes." There was a slight rustling of fabric as Harry seemed to turn over, and there was silence once again.

Sirius closed the door quietly, his mind going a hundred miles a minute.

The following morning seemed to pass by slowly for everyone at Godric's Hollow, although when the time came to say goodbye to the two house guests, it still came too soon.

Everyone stood outside on the freshly fallen snow that covered the ground in the front yard. Lily gave Remus and Sirius a couple rib crushing hugs, while thanking them for coming and wishing that they didn't have to leave so early. James did something similar to this, although his one armed hug wasn't as damaging to his manly pride as Lily's constricting embrace would have been.

Rosie was crying a river, as she was embraced by her Uncles, she cried loudly that she didn't want them to go, and had to be gently encouraged by Lily to release her bear-like hold on the two men.

Harry was the last one to say goodbye. All the sobs raking his sister's form and all the noises his parents made to try and calm him down fell to the background. Remus bent down and wrapped his arms lovingly around the straight-faced child, and held on tightly for a few seconds before letting go. Sirius had than engulfed the youth in a tight embrace and whispered that he loved him and would see him again soon.

As his two Uncles walked up to the side of the road and held out their wands to summon the triple-decker, Harry tried to keep a neutral face, but he had a feeling he was losing that battle. When the bus finally did arrive, Harry only got to see one fleeting glance of Remus' face before the doors quickly closed and the oddly coloured vehicle sped away.

He couldn't stop the single, traitorous tear that streaked a path down his cheek.

Once again, he was all alone.


	5. attacking Rosie

**The Culls**

_Culls meaning to remove someone or something deemed worthless or inferior._

_I am rewriting the first 7 chapters I have published._

_This story was based on and inspired by Silver Angel 7's story The Results of Our Choices. I adopted the story from Silver Angel 7 with her permission and will try to uphold Silver's standards while putting my own twist to it._

_Summary:__ AU. Each choice and decision you make has consequences that can be either good or bad. Like how Rosie was said to be the defeater of Voldemort when it was really Harry's doing. Which lead to Harry's mistreat him that would shape the person and choices Harry made in the future._

_Warnings:__ This story may contain child abuse, violence and gore, coarse language, homicidal and suicidal thoughts and actions, and slash. This story may also eventually contain Grey!Independent!Intelligent!Harry. Currently rated T. I may raise it later, and tell me if you think it should be raised._

_Disclaimer:__ All characters and places belong to J.K. Rowling. I own nothing._

_/'Parseltongue'/ _

"_Emphasized words and spells"_

"Normal speech"

…_Words…_ Dream

Chapter 5:

If Harry knew six months ago that he wouldn't see either of his beloved Uncles again, he was sure he wouldn't have let them go on that memorable Christmas. He missed his Uncles terribly, and it was only when they came for their infrequent visits that he ever felt happy at his home.

It had been seven months since Voldemort's attack and the world was first lead to believe that Rosie was the one who defeated him and deemed the girl-who-lived. It had been seven months of Harry suffering through constantly being pushed out of the way so everyone could get to Rosie. Seven months of being pushed into the shadows as no one wanted to be bothered by him unless it had anything to do with Rosie. For seven months, Harry had tried his hardest to be the perfect child; he'd wake up, get dress, and make his own breakfast all by himself, so he wouldn't bother his parents. He never made a lot of noise when playing with his toys and always shared with his sister.

He'd even tried to do a few chores around the house although that proved difficult since he was only five years old and barely could see over the kitchen counter unless he used a chair. He'd done all these things in the hopes of receiving some of his parents attention and to try to get their pride directed at him every once in a while instead of at his sister, but it never seemed to work. In fact, the only time he ever seemed to get his parents attention lately was when he did something wrong, and he would be scolded for not being more like his sister.

This always upset Harry. How was he supposed to be more like his sister when the second he started acting like her, he was sure to get a tongue lashing from his parents for acting so improper. Whenever Rosie did something wrong his parents would either laugh it off as something adorable or gently tell her that what she did wasn't right, but then they would let it go. If Harry did something wrong his parents would either strictly tell him that what he did was wrong or he would get yelled at sometimes accompanied with a hard slap in the back of the head. It's just wasn't fair! He was trying, but it just didn't seem like he would ever be good enough for his parents. His parents still said they loved him, but as the saying goes, actions speak much louder than words.

Of course telling his parents the truth about that night was always popping up into his mind, but by now he realized that it was probably no longer an option. Harry was sure that his parents wouldn't believe him. It had been too long since the attack had happened and it was now just common knowledge that Rosie had defeated Voldemort and for anyone else to have done it would be preposterous. Besides, they'd just think he was doing it for attention.

Now fast-forward to July 31, his and Rosie's joint birthdays. James and Lily always thought themselves lucky to have their children born on the same day as that meant throwing one joint party instead of two making sure neither was bigger than the other. It several hours before Rosie and Harry's joint birthdays and their parents had told them to go play out in their clearing while they got the party set up. Harry was particularly looking forward to this birthday party as he knew it was Rosie's party not his. He overheard his parents planning the party and it was all about Rosie. He didn't even think, they remembered to buy him a present. He knew that the only presents he would be receiving were from his Uncles' Remus and Sirius.

The clearing was within the small forest that sat at the back of the Potter property. They discovered it a few months back while exploring. After what seem like hours of vigorous games of hide-and-go-seek, tag and other little games, they both were laying exhausted. It had been fun but these things were always tiring.

Harry had just recovered his breathe when he thought he heard his sister say something, and he asked her to repeat herself. Rosie, who seemed to also have recovered, looked at him quizzically and replied that she hadn't opened her mouth, so Harry just blamed the noise on a trick of the wind or something.

But then he heard it again, and he knew that it was no trick of the wind. It was definitely a voice of some sort, but for the life of him, he couldn't think of anyone who sounded like that. It sounded like the owner of the voice was angry at something. The 's' seemed to be abnormally prolonged, and Harry thought it was an accent of some sort, and was vaguely familiar sounding.

Harry's musings were interrupted when he heard a squeal from his sister and quickly looked over to see the girl jump up onto his feet and stare down at something a few meters away, an expression of fascination appearing across his face.

"Harry, look!" Harry stood up from his pile and walked over to where his sister was standing to see what she was pointing at. He was surprised to see what appeared to be a garter snake slowly slither out of the bushes, tongue flicking in and out of its mouth, tasting the air.

"It's a snake," Harry stated unnecessarily.

"I know! Isn't it cool?" Rosie started walking towards the scaled animal slowly, as to not scare it away.

With every step his sister took, the accented voice seemed to get louder, and now Harry could tell that whoever it belonged to seemed to be getting increasingly more distressed.

When Rosie had finally reached the serpent, she seemed to decide that she wanted to play with it, so she bent down and forcibly wrapped her hand around the prolonged form and roughly lifted it up into the air. As soon as Rosie touched the snake, the unknown voice let out a string of nasty curse words and it was at that very moment that Harry realized it was the snake that had been talking all this time.

Rosie was now holding the serpent out in front of her, griping its body tightly near the head, and looking at it with a captivated expression. Harry was vaguely aware that his sister seemed to be talking to him, telling him to come over and look at it, but Harry was to enthralled in the fact that he could hear a snake speak, and wasn't really concentrating on anything except for what the animal had to say.

_/'Ssstupid human…Let me down!...OWW!...Your hold isss too tight… much too tight…Damnit!...For the love of Salazar, you ssstupid mortal! Put me down thisss inssstant!...You are hurting me...It isss dificult to…breathe…'/_

"Harry! Come _on_! Before it escapes!" At the sound of the last shriek from his sister, he changed his stare from the snake writhing in his sister's arms to Rosie's face.

"I think you should put it down," Harry said quietly.

"What? Why?" Rosie stared at him like he had just proposed that they go jump off a ten

story building.

"You're hurting it, so let it go," Harry stated, this time a little louder.

"How do you know I'm hurting it? I'm not hurting, I'm playing with it. See?" Rosie started to swing the snake around her, as if it were some inanimate piece of rope.

Harry could feel something ignite within him at the actions of his sister. "Rosie! Put the snake _down_! You're hurting it!"

"No, I'm not! Merlin, it's just a snake Harry," Rosie started to swing it more furiously around her head and accidentally hit it on a nearby tree.

"Rosie! Stop it!" The fire started to spread through out his veins. He had to stop his sister.

She was torturing a defenseless animal; Harry could hear it's pleas for himself.

A few moments passed by, where Rosie repeatedly hit the snake against the tree, when a piercing yell echoed through the air, putting a stop to her 'game'.

"STOP!"

A wave of power accompanied the voice and struck her. Rosie was quickly flung back into a tree with a _'thump'_ before sliding slowly to the ground. She looked up to see what had happened and was met with the sight of her brother, or at least what she thought was her brother, crouching in front of her. But something was terribly wrong with him. His eyes were no longer their bright emerald colour so much like their mothers, but were now black and empty, almost soulless. A light wind that seemed to be under his control surrounded him, pushing his bangs up out of his face, and magic seemed to pulse all around him.

Rosie looked up fearfully into the creature's face, and when it spoke, it's voice was quiet, but seemed to ricochet off of everything in sight, "I told you to _stop_. Maybe you should listen next time."

And then she lost consciousness.

Harry stared in horror down at the unmoving form of his sister, slumped over at the base of the tree. A small trail of blood slowly ran down the side of her face, making Harry gasp. The fire that had seemed to envelope him had simmered down to nothing once he had finally stopped his sister from her games of torture with the snake.

The green-eyed child was incredibly frightened. He had no idea what had just happened. Well, actually that was a lie. He knew what had happened; he just didn't know why he had reacted so strongly to the distressed creature. When Rosie had purposefully hurt the serpent for no apparent reason, Harry found himself getting an indescribable urge to stop his sister from her games. When Rosie refused to listen to him, there was no other option, so Harry forcefully had to stop his sister. But a small shove would have done the trick, but instead he had slammed his sister into a tree, knocking her out. One thought ran through out his head. This was not good; this was not good at all.

Harry was about to kneel down beside the inert girl when the sound of someone approaching was heard behind him, and Lily stepped out into the small clearing.

"Rosie, Harry come on in for...for…" she trailed off at the sight of her unconscious and wounded daughter. She let out a small shriek before sprinting over to where Rosie still sat, slumped over and quickly fell down onto her knees. She gave her small shoulders a little shake, "Rosie! Rosie! Can you hear me? Rosie! Come on, wake up honey! Rosie!" She was slowly becoming more and more frantic as she realized that Rosie couldn't be awoken.

Tears started to spill down her cheeks as she tried unsuccessfully to wake up her daughter.

She quickly spun around and looked over at Harry, who had been standing off to the side in hopes that he wouldn't be noticed. "Harry! Go get your father! Now! And hurry!" She turned back to her daughter, "Oh Rosie..."

Harry turned and sprinted towards the house, knowing full well that if he took a long time to retrieve his father it would just cause a lot more problems. He ran in through the back door and kitchen and into the living room where his father was hunched over a desk, brow furrowed in concentration.

Harry only hesitated for a second, "Daddy," his father looked up at the sound of the timid voice.

"Yes? What is it Harry?" his voice was tinged in a bit of annoyance at having been interrupted from whatever business he had been doing.

Harry swallowed, "There…There was an accident. In the forest. Me and Rosie were playing and she got hurt and Mummy's out there right now but she told me to get you because Rosie won't wake up." He said the last sentence in a rush, trying to get it over with.

James quickly stood up, chair tipping over, and asked where they were.

"They're in the...in the clearing."

James walked out of the house at a quick pace that switched to a run once he was outside. Harry followed as fast as his small legs could carry him.

When they finally reached the clearing, James ran over to where his wife and child sat, questions rapidly flying out of his mouth in-between the chants of Rosie's name and small shakes of the shoulder. A moment or two passed before one of them came to their senses and remembered that they could wield magic. James swiftly extracted his wand from its holster up his sleeve and quickly muttered _"Enervate!"_

Rosie groggily blinked up at her parents hovering faces before grimacing in pain. She quickly held up a hand to hold her head.

"Rosie!" Lily exclaimed a moment before she engulfed Rosie in a fierce, protective hug. James sat a relieved hand upon his daughter's shoulder. Harry stood off to the side awkwardly.

After the initial relief had passed the question Harry had been dreading, although knew inevitably would come, was asked by Harry's father, "Baby, what happened? Who hurt you?"

Rosie was quiet for a second, her eyes squinting in concentration as she struggled to recall what had happened. When a partial memory came to her "We were playing when I saw a snake. I wanted to play with it so I was trying to catch it but I don't remember anything else," She finished in a small voice.

"Harry can you tell us what happen after that" said James tightly. Harry took a brief moment to debate rather to tell the truth or lie.

"I was still sitting down when I heard her tell me to come over and help her catch it." stated Harry in a steady voice. "When I got up and to see what she was talking about, I saw her chasing after the snake. I told her to stop but I guess she didn't hear me. Before I could reach her, she tripped over a root and slammed into the tree at full force. I ran over to her and trying to wake her when mom came to call us inside"

Since his sister couldn't remember, Harry wasn't planning on incriminating himself and receive a harsh punishment. Harry wasn't stupid and knew if he told the truth only bad things would follw. Sadly, he noticed how both of his parents seem to lose their tempers with him rather easily ever since the attack and Harry wasn't going to add fuel to the fire.

"Is that what happened" directed James at Rosie.

"Yeah that sounds right. Mommy, my head hurts" whined Rosie.

"Mommy will do something about your head and then I will get you all dressed up for your party" stated Lily. James strode over to where Lily sat with Rosie in her and bent down lifting Rosie into his arms and started walking back towards the house with Lily following closely behind.

When he was sure his parents and Rosie well out of hearing distances, Harry let out a sigh of relief. For a moment Harry was terrified that his father didn't believe or that Rosie might suddenly remember.

Gathering himself, Harry headed back toward the house to get cleaned up for the party. He was nearing the edge of the clearing when a hissed thanks reached his ears. Harry whispered a you are welcome before leaving the clearing.


	6. abandonment

_**The Culls**_

Culls meaning to remove someone or something deemed worthless or inferior.

I am rewriting the first 7 chapters I have published.

This story was based on and inspired by Silver Angel 7's story The Results of Our Choices. I adopted the story from Silver Angel 7 with her permission and will try to uphold Silver's standards while putting my own twist to it.

Summary: AU. Each choice and decision you make has consequences that can be either good or bad. Like how Rosie was said to be the defeater of Voldemort when it was really Harry's doing. Which lead to Harry's mistreat him that would shape the person and choices Harry made in the future.

Warnings: This story may contain child abuse, violence and gore, coarse language, homicidal and suicidal thoughts and actions, and slash. This story may also eventually contain Grey!Independent!Intelligent!Harry. Currently rated T. I may raise it later, and tell me if you think it should be raised.

Disclaimer: All characters and places belong to J.K. Rowling. I own nothing.

/'_Parseltongue'/ _

"_Emphasized words and spells"_

"Normal speech"

…_Words…_ Dream

Chapter 6:

Since Harry had dressed himself, he took a peek at the party. He noticed his name on banners and such but when he caught sight of the presents he was heartbroken when he noticed only Rosie's name. He hoped that he had a few on the bottom but he got the feeling that James and Lily didn't even bother getting him anything. As he was walking away from where the party was being held, he was surprised when his mother had stopped him and gave him an envelope and two boxes. Harry had took them to his room and opened them. In the boxes, he found only clothing both muggle and magical. The envelope contained several galleons, a gift certificate to Flourish & Blotts, and Flourence. He felt let down that this was all he got when Rosie had a tableful and would receive many more from the guest but counted himself lucky as he thought he wouldn't get anything from them.

The first ones to arrive were of course Remus and Sirius. They had been quickly followed by many other people, including Mrs. Longbottom and her grandson Neville, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley and their children, a number of miscellaneous co-workers of James and Lily, Albus Dumbledore, Minerva McGonagall, and a few other members of the Hogwarts staff. Then many strangers, who wanted nothing but to get a glimpse of Rosie were there along with some children.

Harry spent most of the day along side Remus and Sirius. Although there were many children at the party, they all seemed to be very hesitant in letting him join in their games.

Well, that is everyone except the Weasley twins, Fred and George. They were two of the funniest and friendliest people Harry knew and they never hesitated in offering for him to join in their fun. But Harry declined the offer though since he did not want to force his company on the other children when it wasn't wanted. The offer was still greatly appreciated though.

Around three o'clock that afternoon, Rosie got to open her presents. Harry watched quietly with his red dragon held tightly under one arm as Rosie tore through present after present. Harry's eyes bulged slightly when he first saw the humongous pile of gifts that covered the table in their foyer, each one of them with Rosie's name written on it. Harry would be lying if he said that he wasn't slightly jealous of his sister but he kept his mouth tightly shut and did not verbally complain. He couldn't help the odd vindictive thought that ran through his mind when Rosie opened an especially nice gift, though.

After that, it was time for cake. The huge dessert was done up in the shape of a broomstick and snitch intersecting each other with a large 'Happy Birthday Rosie and Harry!' written in red and pink icing atop of it. Thirteen wizard's candles were stuck throughout the cake and when they were lit, they started to dance. Everyone gathered around the dinning room table to watch as Rosie and Harry blew them out, and cheered when the first slice of cake was cut.

About an hour later, the guests started to disperse, and left with a 'Happy Birthday!' to Rosie with a odd witch or wizard telling Harry Happy birthday and giving him a gift or two. Right before Remus and Sirius left, they pulled Harry aside and gave him his gifts. Smiling widely, Harry quickly unwrapped them. Remus had given him a rare book on magical creatures and a large slab of his favorite Honeyduke's chocolate, while Sirius had given him a necklace with a beautiful emerald pendant. He said that the pendant was charmed to keep unwanted Legimens out of the wearers mind. Harry had quickly slid the necklace over his head and tucked it under his collar. And a book on beginner Transfiguration and Charms. Then the two hugged the child close before departing.

At first, Harry had thought that his Uncles had been the last guests to leave, but that assumption was proven wrong when a quiet and aged voice spoke up from behind him.

"Ah, my dear boy, there you are! I had a feeling that you wouldn't be that difficult to find; I haven't the slightest reason why your parents disagreed so strongly with me," the long, white-bearded man who Harry recognized as Professor Dumbledore smiled gently down upon Harry's small form, "Lily and James, along with your sister are presently seated in the living room, waiting for you and I to return to it." When Harry gave the aged man a look of confusion, the Professor continued, "I have asked them if I may speak to your family about some important news and information that has just recently been brought to my attention, and I thought that you and your sister's presence would be appropriate."

Although Harry was still very much confused and at a loss of what was so important that he and his sister would be able to listen in on it, he nodded his head and followed Dumbledore into the living room. Quickly moving so he was sitting down on the floor and resting his back on the base of the couch, Harry turned his gaze and waited quietly along with the rest of his family as Dumbledore seated himself in one of the red chairs.

After nearly a minute of tense silence, James cleared his throat nervously, and prompted the man with, "So, what's this news you have for us Albus?"

The old man's eyes locked with each of the Potter's, before sighing and beginning, "Unfortunately the news I have for your family, is not what I expected to have to deliver for at least a few more years. I wish terribly that the news I have for you today would bring happiness and joy to your faces, but alas, that will not be the case, and for that, I am truly sorry," he paused for a second before continuing in the same serious tone, "As you know, even though Voldemort is no longer around, there are still many rogue Death Eaters that the Ministry have been unable to apprehend. It has been brought to my attention by a very close contact that a few of these rogue Death Eaters are recruiting new and old members of Voldemort's followers and are now planning something. It was only very recently that I have found out that that something is the resurrection of Voldemort himself."

Silence consumed the room once again as everyone took in what was just said. The startled silence was only interrupted when Lily let out a barely audible, "What?"

"I know this is a shock for you all, and I would very much like for that to be all that needs to be said, but there is more that you need to know. The Death Eaters are planning on using Rosie's blood to reunite Voldemort's soul and body."

"What?" Lily's voice was frantic. "Are you telling me Albus, that these…these _people_," she spat, "are planning on hurting my child? My baby?"

"You'll never know how much I regret having to say this, but yes that is exactly what I am saying." At this, Lily pulled Rosie off of James' lap, and onto her own, where she held her in a protective embrace. A tear slowly fell from the woman's eye as she held on tighter.

"Lily, please do not cry. Those tears are unheeded. You need to realize that just because there are people who wish to harm your child, doesn't mean they will succeed." This quickly caught everyone's attention.

"There is a way that we can ensure the safety of your daughter, but there is a consequence," Dumbledore seemed to be waiting for someone to tell him to continue, and when James nodded his head, the aged voice persisted, "There is a spell that I have found in my private collection of books. This spell works very much like the _Fidelius charm,_ but you are your own secret keeper. The problem with this spell and the reason I did not mention it the first time you went into hiding is that the spell itself is only able to work on one magically-inclined individual, meaning you and James."

James opened his mouth to comment, but Dumbledore quickly persisted. "Please, Mr. Potter, let me explain fully, then you may speak your mind." When there was no move of a remark, he continued, "The spell is originally meant for the use of one adult witch or wizard who has gained full control over their magical abilities and would be able to sustain the spell for the amount of time needed. As the spell stands, it would be no use to your family since Rosie wouldn't be able to perform such magic, especially for that amount of time. But there is a certain type of loophole, if you will, that I believe will enable the spell to work on not only on the two of you, but also on your daughter."

"So, you're saying we could bring Rosie with us?" Lily's eyes held a shine of hope to them as she stared at the aged man, looking for her answer.

At the small inclination of Dumbledore's head, it was as if the walls itself let out a conjoined sigh of relief. Lily and James shared a small, tired smile as Dumbledore explained further, "I have found another spell hidden away in the confines of a century old book, depicting the different pros and cons of certain types of magic. The spell that you need is a type of soul magic. It is used when doing very powerful conjoined magic, in which one of the people involved has not enough magical strength. How the spell works is it reaches down into your very magical core, your soul, and retracts enough magic to compensate for the other persons lack thereof. I must warn you; this spell can go very horrible if not preformed by someone with an adequate magic supply. But I believe that we will not have to concern ourselves with that, considering the power you both possess."

"Albus, this is wonderful news! We can save my baby, my precious little girl!" Lily kissed the top of her daughter's head as James smiled wide at the aged man.

"I know this news is all very elating but there is still one more fact that needs to be taken into consideration before you make your final decision." All the eyes in the room rested on Dumbledore as he continued, "Although you are able to take Rosie safely into hiding with you, I hope you realize that she would be the only one able to go with you. The magic itself requires quite a bit of your personal energy and taking Harry with you… I'm afraid just is not an option."

Silence caught the tongues of James and Lily, as their eyes slowly rested on Harry, as if they had forgotten that he was there too. Which is most likely since they have been doing that a lot lately. Once realization dawned on their minds what Dumbledore had just said, Lily was up in a second, her legs crouched as she protectively encircled her arms around her son. Harry flinched a little out of surprise but relaxed when nothing happened.

"Albus! Are you kidding me? You can't expect me to just…I can't just leave... he's my _son_ Albus!" Lily's grip tightened a little as she looked up tearfully at Dumbledore. Harry's surprised eyes followed his mothers gaze.

"Lily, my dear…you need to think of this predicament logically. If you do not go into hiding, not only will you lose Rosie, but her death will be the reason for Voldemort's return. It was only a mere eight months ago, surely you remember the fear, the pain, and the agony that came with Voldemort's reign. By going into hiding, you can stop this from happening again. I've already looked into a safe residence for Harry to stay in till his years at Hogwarts arrive."

"Where? Where will he stay that's safe? He's going to be a target for the Death Eaters! He's the brother of the girl-who-lived! Any dark wizard would just love to get their hands on him!"

"Ah, this is where magic comes into play. He will be staying in a muggle environment, with your sister Petunia and her family. We will set a powerful protection charm, modified slightly with the fidelus charm on the house, making it very difficult and almost impossible for Harry to be found by any wizard wishing him harm."

Harry's small arms hesitantly reached around his mother in a rare hug, as Lily's back shuttered to make her decision. James, who was now holding onto Rosie looked down upon his wife's struggling form, spoke up quietly, "Lily…I think you should allow him to go. We can't give either of the child a proper upbringing if they're taught to be in constant fear and worry, love."

A few moments passed while Lily seemed to get enough control over her thoughts to think over the situation sensibly. Taking a deep breath, she looked up into the calm eyes of Albus Dumbledore, and spoke her decision, "When…," she cleared her chocked voice,

"When will he be going?"

"I was hoping to come retrieve him tomorrow afternoon."

"Tomorrow! That's too soon Albus!" Lily's voice was slightly frantic again.

"I know it is early Lily, but the sooner the better. I'd like to have you all safely in hiding by the day after Harry leaves."

Lily began to silently sob once again, but still shook her head in agreement.

The following hour was spent with James, Dumbledore, and Lily discussing the plans of the future. While none of the Potters looked forward to what the next few years would bring, the confusion and hidden horror in the green eyes of the child on the floor made it obvious who understood this the most.

Getting up Harry went to his room more angry and hurt than he ever been. He had thought his parents would have fought harder for him or at least made a half decent effort. His heart ache something furious as he replayed the conversation over in his head. He wanted to scream and throw things making them see that it was wrong to send him away. That he was their child too and that he was as good as Rosie but Harry didn't do those things. What he did was start packing his belonging making sure he was ready to leave tomorrow.

Knowing he was going to be living in a muggle environment for next five years, Harry packed all his muggle clothing and things in his rolling suitcases. And decided to take his magical things with him but he was going to make sure to keep them hidden. He was going to use the magical pouch he had received a few years back from his Uncle Sirius. It was charmed to hold as much as Harry wanted but wouldn't change shape or get heavy. Sirius told him that it had a few charms on it like featherweight, extension, anti-theft, imperturbable, impervius, disillusionment, muggle-repelling, notice-me-not and it was keyed into Harry magical signature.

With his packing done, he slipped into bed trying not to think of what his future held. The next day as the sun was setting, Dumbledore arrived to take Harry away. The atmosphere was far from calm as Lily and James rushed around the house, packing boxes and trunks, all while trying to keep up a very futile 'nothing-was-wrong' façade for Rosie's sake. When it was finally time for Harry to leave, there was hardly a pause in the busy buzz for a hug and kiss goodbye before his parents were off doing something else. Something obviously more important.

Harry walked down the pathway away from his house, red plush dragon in one hand, rolling suitcase in the other. His head was looking down at his shoes as he walked, thoughts of betrayal and loneliness at the lack of love or care from his parents swirling around his head. He wished his parents cared more, that they weren't going to send him away and so blatantly have chosen Rosie over him. Harry always knew that if something like this happened, Rosie would obviously have been put in front of him, but the utter feeling of resentment and betrayal he felt towards them was not expected.

Harry met up with Dumbledore at the end of the path; a scrunched up can held in one of his aged palms. The man instructed Harry to lay a finger on the port key and to not remove it till they arrived at their destination.

"Once we get there, I need you to stay close to me Harry. Do not stray, for your own safety."

Harry nodded his head in understanding.

"Are you ready?"

Harry hesitated, "Yes, sir."

"Good," Dumbledore smiled reassuringly, "Let us have a count down then? From five?"

"Yes, sir."

"Alright," his smile widened, "Five."

Harry looked back at his house and allowed memories to race through his mind.

"Four."

He remembered all the good times he had had there with his family. All the adventures he and his sister had gone on. All the games and laughter and love that had been shared within those walls. But then there was a pause. All the games and laughter and love had happened without him. He hardly laughed in that house; there was hardly any love shown for him there.

"Three."

His parents really didn't care about him. Sure, they said they did, and his mother even put on a good show of tears last night when she found out he was leaving. He was sure the waterworks were more from her own guilt at abandoning her son rather then her own sympathetic pain for her child. His father, on the other hand, didn't even argue with his departure. Didn't even come close to shedding one single tear. He didn't care.

"Two."

They didn't care about him. Ever since Rosie had become the 'girl-who-lived', they had been drifting away from him, leaving the love and care for his well being behind. They didn't care. They didn't love him. They didn't care.

Harry shut his eyes.

"One."

_I hate you._

His blackened eyes opened, staring down the house, before both him and Dumbledore disappeared in a swirl of colour.


	7. Meeting the Dursleys

_**The Culls**_

Culls meaning to remove someone or something deemed worthless or inferior.

I am rewriting the first 7 chapters I have published.

This story was based on and inspired by Silver Angel 7's story The Results of Our Choices. I adopted the story from Silver Angel 7 with her permission and will try to uphold Silver's standards while putting my own twist to it.

Summary: AU. Each choice and decision you make has consequences that can be either good or bad. Like how Rosie was said to be the defeater of Voldemort when it was really Harry's doing. Which lead to Harry's mistreat him that would shape the person and choices Harry made in the future.

Warnings: This story may contain child abuse, violence and gore, coarse language, homicidal and suicidal thoughts and actions, and slash. This story may also eventually contain Grey!Independent!Intelligent!Harry. Currently rated T. I may raise it later, and tell me if you think it should be raised.

Disclaimer: All characters and places belong to J.K. Rowling. I own nothing.

/'_Parseltongue'/ _

"_Emphasized words and spells"_

"Normal speech"

…_Words…_ Dream

Chapter 7:

The world around Harry swirled with multitudes of different colours and shapes, all dancing and blending together. One hand tightly clutched his luggage and dragon, the other was glued to the old can. He shut his eyes against blur and mixing colors and within a few seconds he felt himself land in a disheveled heap on the cold cement. Looking up, he took the offered hand of Dumbledore's cool and collected form, and stood up. Grabbing his strewn items, he followed the aged man closely down the silent muggle street they had arrived on. The houses were all still as the summer night air, shadows casted upon hidden crevices from where the streetlights hit. The only sounds discernable from the surrounding silence were a distant dog barking, a very soft rustle of bushes, and their own echoing footsteps. The calm, orderly, and overall cool aura emitting from the unfamiliar place he was in made Harry feel highly uncomfortable and a bit intimidated. Tightening his hold on the red plushy he was holding, he picked up his pace in order to follow Dumbledore more closely.

Dumbledore's pace slowed to a light walk when they came to a house much like the others along the street, but with a large, black '4' posted on the mailbox. The two walked up the asphalt driveway to the large, wooden front door. Harry's small form looked up at the tall man as he wordlessly racked his hand on the door. A few seconds of quiet, rustling bushes were all that were heard, until a commotion of stumbling feet came from the other side of the door. It quickly opened.

Harry barely got a glimpse of the tall, boney woman, before he and Dumbledore were quickly ushered inside, "Well, what are you waiting for? Come in, come in! Quickly now, before the neighbors see." The woman peered outside the doorframe to look around, before pulling her head back in and shutting the door tightly.

Dumbledore's eyes sparkled as he laid them on the horse-like woman in front of him, "Ah, Petunia. It seems like years since we last met my dear."

"Yes, maybe to you, but the ash I'm still trying to clean up from your appearance in our fireplace a couple days ago proves us otherwise," her pale eyes narrowed.

The aged man gave a chuckle, "I'm sorry about that, I didn't realize I had left you a mess. I could clean in up if you'd like?" He began to reach for his wand.

"No, no! I don't think that will be necessary, I can do it myself," she uneasily stared at the place Dumbledore's hand had been drifting to.

He smiled. "Alright. Now, if we're done here, would you mind showing Harry and I to the living room, where we may finalize his stay?"

Although she didn't seem extremely pleased about it in Harry's opinion, she nodded and gestured for them to follow her. They walked into a room just beside the foyer they had been standing in. The room was a tad impressive, not from the size or anything like that, but from the organization of everything. Nothing seemed to be out of place or unclean, and the furniture and décor was indescript, yet very tasteful at the same time. Sitting on the long, beige sofa sat a stern-looking and unhealthily large man and what appeared to be his son although Harry was sure 'baby beluga' would have done the description much more justice.

The bushy mustache of the large man wiggled as he spoke, "Dumbledore," he gave a curt nod of acknowledgment in his direction, "And this must be the boy," his slanted, beady eyes narrowed a bit as they landed on Harry's small form. Controlling the urge to step back, Harry looked down.

"Yes, this is Harry Potter," the aged wizard placed a hand on the small shoulder. Harry continued looking down.

"Very good, very good…," the man's gaze drifted back to Dumbledore, "Now, since we covered pretty much everything there is to cover last time you were here, I see no reason for you to be in our home longer then needed. So let's just cut to the chase. I believe you mentioned some sort of…cheque, for looking after him," Harry glanced up at the man, and noted the slight look of hunger in his eye. When Dumbledore removed the white envelope from his cloak to hand over to the beefy man, Harry noticed his uncle's sticking out his tongue slightly and wetting his lips in anticipation.

"I believe I did too, Mr. Dursley," he offered the cheque for the large man to take. When it was snatched from the aged hand, Harry had to blink; he didn't know it was physically possible for someone so large to move so quickly. "There should be enough there for you and your family to continue to live comfortably for quite some time with your new addition to the household," Dumbledore explained. The wide and dazed smile covering the other man's face made it quite evident that he wasn't listening.

The boney woman peered over the man's shoulder to see the amount and a similar smile of greed appeared across her own features. Looking up, the smile quickly changed to one of blatantly fake sweetness, "This was very kind of you Dumbledore but you know it wasn't necessary. It's our pleasure to take care of our little Harry, here," It was pretty obvious that that was a far cry from the truth by the way her husband's clouded eyes still stared at the small paper and a small bit of drool was forming at the side of his mouth.

Nevertheless, she walked over to where Harry stood and put her hands on both his shoulders leading him over to where the rest of her family sat on the couch. Harry's back remained stiff the whole time. The overall unfriendly demeanour of his Aunt, Uncle, and cousin put him on edge and he felt that as soon as Dumbledore left only unpleasantness would follow him.

Once she was back standing behind her husband at the couch, she gave him a discrete nudge, knocking him out of his mesmerized state. Looking up, a smile that was, if possible, even more phony then the one of his wife's, was plastered across his walrus-like face.

"Yes, this was very generous of you, thank you very much. We'll be sure to take care of our little _Harry_ here as if he was one of our own. I mean, he is family after all," the man's beefy hand reached out and mussed Harry's hair in what he assumed was supposed to be an affectionate way. Controlling the urge to distance himself as far as he could from these people, Harry looked down.

"I can see that Harry will be in good hands," Dumbledore smiled.

"Oh, he will be, don't you worry," his Aunts hand was on his shoulder again. Harry shuttered, although doubted anyone was able to notice.

"Now that that's all settled then, I'm going to have to take my leave. I hate to go so quickly, but there is much to be done before your sister and the rest of her family goes into hiding tomorrow, as I'm sure you all understand."

A lump formed itself into Harry's throat at these words. Dumbledore was actually leaving him with these people. This wasn't some morbid dream that he was going to wake up from. This was reality, and as soon as the aged wizard stepped out of that front door, it would be final.

But even as everyone rose from the couch and walked the man to the door, Harry didn't protest his stay. He said nothing. The only thing muttered from his tiny frame was a small goodbye when Dumbledore bided his farewells, promising to return in a couple months time to see how he was adjusting. And then the man was gone into the night.

Harry was finally alone with his newly discovered family.

The falsely sweet atmosphere couldn't have ended more quickly.

The large man was towering over him within a second.

"You listen here boy, and you listen good," he spat. Taken aback by the man's abruptness, Harry stumbled back, tripping himself and falling down onto his rear. The man responded by gripping the front of his shirt and lifting him up, so they were now face to face, "While you are staying in this house, there will be rules, and you _will_ follow them. I don't care what you could get away with doing while you were with your freaks-of-parents; I don't want any of that shit going on in my household. No freaky incidents, no mysterious, unholy acts, no _nothing_. If I hear that any, _any_ of that…that _magic_ was done while you are staying under this roof, you better hope it was to summon a first aid kit, because you'll need it after I'm through with you," he shook him roughly, emphasizing his point, "Do I make myself clear boy?"

Still completely shocked by the difference he was seeing in his Uncle, Harry shakily nodded his head, "Y-yes, s-sir."

"Good," the man gripped tighter to his shirt, and lifted the boy's small frame so that his feet just barely brushed the floor they were dangling above. It was becoming difficult to get air to his lungs, which seemed to bring Harry back to his sense. He started struggling against the death grip, kicking his legs, banging his arms against the hold, gasping. This just resulted in his Uncle's hold becoming even tighter, more painful.

Walking over to a door under the staircase that his Aunt quickly opened, his Uncle threw him roughly inside. His head hit the back wall hard with an unhealthy '_smack'_, and his small body fell to the floor.

"There'll be many things for you to do around this house while you stay here, and you'll be expected to work for what we so generously give you. While you're not performing the tasks we give you, you'll be staying in here. Clear?" His Aunt stared down at him.

Harry nodded thorough the stars that were still dancing through his vision.

She leaned in through the short door and pointed, "Light. Pull this if you want it to work," she demonstrated by tugging on the skinny rope, turning the light on and off again, then pointed to a bundle of sheets and a pillow on top of a skinny cushion, "Bed.

You'll be sleeping here," she then pointed to a old bucket pushed off to the side of the small space, "Toilet. If you have to do your business in the middle of the night or any other time you're being kept in here, that's where you do it, understand?"

"Y-yes, Aunt Petunia."

She didn't acknowledge his words, but simply stepped back out of the small cupboard. Coming up from behind her, his Uncle tossed the belongings he had arrived with into the Harry's new 'room', and shut the door with a slam. A clicking noise was heard, indicating that he was now locked in.

Taking a deep breathe from the sudden silent darkness, Harry quickly crawled over to where his Aunt showed him the light was, and pulled the rope. A dim light filled the small room, illuminating the few things that were in it.

Harry's breathe was now heavy, the thoughts of what had just happened flying vigorously through his mind, one barely distinguishable from the other. Barely controlling the soul clenching cries that wanted to fall from his mouth, Harry allowed only silent tears to fall from his eyes while he looked for his red Dragon. Not finding it right away, his hands started to shake, a panic beginning to rise from his chest. Then he spotted the red plushy lying on it's side, beside the bucket his Aunt had pointed out. Quickly grabbing the toy, he scuttled up on to the mattress, back pressed into the corner it was lying in, and tightly wrapped his arms around his inanimate friend, burying his face into the red softness.

Needless to say, it was a long time before his body finally stopped it's shakes, and sleep finally claimed him.


	8. Hello Hermione and Jane

_**The Culls**_

Culls means to remove someone or something deemed worthless or inferior.

**Harry's age is 6 now.**

This story was based on and inspired by Silver Angel 7's story The Results of Our Choices. I adopted the story from Silver Angel 7 with her permission.

Summary: AU. After Voldemort's attack, Harry is denied credit for the defeat and his standing with his family and people in general changes. He is looked over and neglected forced to take care of himself. These things will shape him.

Warnings: This story may contain child abuse, violence and gore, coarse language, homicidal and suicidal thoughts and actions, and slash. This story may also eventually contain Grey!Independent!Intelligent!Harry. Currently rated T. I may raise it later, and tell me if you think it should be raised.

Disclaimer: All characters and places belong to J.K. Rowling. I own nothing.

/'_Parseltongue'/ _

"_Emphasized words and spells"_

"Normal speech"

…_Words…_ Dream

Chapter 8:

Waking up hours later, Harry wasn't pleased to find himself still locked up inside the cupboard. He was going to try and get himself out when he heard his aunt and uncle talking.

"Don't you think we should wait before getting rid of the, boy" a voice Harry recognized belonging to his aunt. He pressed his ear against the slots on the door to be able to hear more clearly. They appeared to be arguing about him.

"They want him soon and I can't put them off. If not we will have to payback all the money we owe" said Vernon.

"But they are coming back in a few months to check up on him" said Petunia.

"Then we will tell them... that the boy ran off and we couldn't find him" said Vernon.

"If you think so" said Petunia.

Harry stopped listening after that as he understood all to well what was going to happen to him. He knew that the Dursleys didn't want him and the money was the reason they took him in. He knew life with them was going to be far from pleasant but he never thought they would be selling him. From how his aunt and uncle spoke of who they were selling him too, the person didn't seem pleasant. Harry decided he wouldn't stay around to be shipped off.

Looking at his watch, he noticed that it was 11 p.m. and he only slept for three hours. Since it was looked from the outside and its slots to small for Harry's arm to fit through, he began looking through the items he brought with him. He came across a magical lockpick that his Uncle Sirius had gotten two Christmases ago. He had given it to Harry and private because he didn't want his parents mainly Lily to know he given to him. Sirius had made him promise to never tell anyone not even Rosie or Remus about it. Harry never did and it stayed his and Sirius' secret.

He didn't try to escape until after he heard his aunt and uncle go into their bedroom and turn in for the night. After placing his rolling suitcase and plushy into the magical pouch, Harry used the lockpick to free himself. Once the door opened, he pocketed his lockpick along with his magical pouch and scrambled out of the cupboard. Looking around, he heard snoring signalling the sleeping forms of the Dursleys upstairs.

Making it out of the Dursleys' home, Harry ran for it. He ran through backyards, down alleyways and sidestreets until he ended up in a park. Harry was so tired and needed a rest so he looked around until he found a small building which turned out to be a restroom. Too tired to care, using his last bit of energy Harry crawled into a cubicle and laid down. He just made himself as comfortable as possible and fell asleep.

Hours later, a little girl by the name of Hermione walked into the bathroom. She really had to use the bathroom. The first stall was out of order, the second was too disgusted and when she reached the third, she got a surprise. A boy that looked to be her age was sleeping on the floor. Gently, Hermione shook his shoulders to wake him. He was a bit slow getting up but he did wake up halfway.

"Can you please get out because I really have to use it" asked Hermione twisting a bit to keep it up. Groggily, Harry stumbled out of the bathroom stall. "Thanks" with that Hermione locked the door and did her business.

Harry had made it over to the sink and splashed some cold water on his face to wake himself up. By that time, Hermione had exited out of the bathroom and walked over to the sink beside him to wash her hands. "I am sorry about waking you up but I had to use it and could with you in there" said Hermione politely.

"It is alright, I needed to be up anyways" said Harry sluggishly. "Do you know the time"

Checking her wrist watch, "9:57 a.m." said Hermione.

"Thanks" said Harry before throwing the towel that he had been using to clean his face into the rubbish bin. He was about to walk out of the restroom when Hermione stopped him.

"Wait do you want to play with me" asked Hermione.

"What" said Harry.

"Well I walked here to play but no one else is here would you mind" asked Hermione.

Harry knew he should be getting away but he didn't know where he would go or how he would live. He needed time to think and he believed he was far enough away from the Dursleys so they would find him.

"Okay" said Harry.

Following Hermione out of the bathroom, he had to blink a few times as the brightness of the sunlight hurt his eyes. Once his eyes adjusted to the sunlight, he noticed that he was in a small park that was surrounded by trees. It had a swing set, a slide, and a sand box. It wasn't much but it could easily entertain a child.

Harry sat down on the swing beside Hermione and began moving back and forth. They did that awhile in silence as they were just enjoying each other's company. But the silence eventually ended when Hermione asked something Harry just didn't feel like answering.

"Are you lost" asked Hermione politely. She knew something was up when she found him asleep on the bathroom floor. She decided she would help him find his home.

"No" said Harry.

"Then why were you sleeping on a bathroom floor instead of in your bed" said Hermione.

"Because I have no place to go" said Harry.

"You are homeless" asked Hermione sadly. She had seen many homeless kids in London and always wished they had a place to go.

"Yeah" said Harry. He wasn't lying. He truly didn't have a place to go as his parents had abandoned him and the Dursleys were going to sell him. He wasn't sure where his uncles lived or if they wanted him. They had jobs that kept them busy so much that they wouldn't have time to look after him.

"Then you can live with me" said Hermione. She liked the boy very much. Something about him made her want to care for him and she knew her mom wouldn't mind if he came to live with her. She was always working leaving Hermione to her own devices most of the time and she got lonely. At school, she wasn't really a big hit with kids her age as she just couldn't tolerate some of their overly childish behavior and she got along with people older than her as adults had always been her company. She had been pestering her about giving her a younger sibling but she said that they couldn't afford for her to not be able to work due to pregnacy. Jane, which is the name of Hermione's mother, said she needed a husband before she could have a baby. Hermione guessed that since Harry looked her age, then it would be okay for if he became her brother.

"Your parents wouldn't agree to that" said Harry.

"My mom will be okay with it, and if you come with me to meet her now she will tell you." said Hermione jumping off the swings. When Harry didn't immediately follow, Hermione walked over to him and grabbed his arm pulling him with her. "We got to go now as my mother will be too busy to talk."

No matter how hard Harry struggled, he couldn't get few of Hermione. So he just gave up and went along with it. "My name is Harry by the way" thinking it might be best to introduce himself.

"My name is Hermione"

It didn't take long for them to reach Hermione's home. The neighborhood was a bit rundown looking but Harry wasn't judging it as that didn't mean anything really to Harry as his parents...well really Lily had made sure that Rosie and Harry understood that money didn't mean everything. She did her best to keep her children from becoming spoilt and arrogant like James was as a child. Also Lily had grown up in a very impoverish neighborhood and understood how it was to struggle to get by. The Evans were lucky that they were a bit more well off than their neighbors but that didn't mean they had it easy.

Walking through the door, Harry noticed that the inside was much better looking than the outside. It was very clean and simply furnish but it had a very homely feeling to it.

"Mom, are you still here" said Hermione.

"Honey, I am in the kitchen." said Jane. Hermione pulled Harry further into the house until they reached the kitchen. Looking at the woman, he could see now that those two were related. They both had barely tamable curls, with rich brown eyes and slim builds. They looked actually more like siblings than mother and daughter to Harry.

"Mom, I will like you to meet Harry" announced Hermione. Jane turned to look at her daughter and noticed that she had a boy with here.

"Hello, Harry it is nice to meet you. My name is Jane Granger" said Jane politely holding out her hand which Harry respectfully shook.

"It is nice to meet you, Ms. Granger" said Harry.

"Mom, Harry has no place to go and I want him to live with us. Harry is my age and I will have someone to play with while you work. Please" pleaded Hermione.

Jane smiled at her daughter's antics. She knew Hermione was lonely and Hermione had been hinting about having a sibling but Jane couldn't do that at the moment.

"Do you really have no place to go or did my daughter trick you into coming here" said Jane.

"No ma'am, I have no place to go. My parents abandoned me with some relative, who didn't want me and they basically were going to give me away. I didn't want to go to an orphanage and ranaway" said Harry. He didn't lie really so he didn't feel guilty. His parents did abandoned him and the Dursleys didn't want him and were going to give him away but Harry didn't think it would be to an orphanage.

Jane looked at the boy and he didn't seem to be lying. She was a very good judge of character and the boy seem to be good. Also, Hermione never warmed up to people like she seemed to have with Harry. It wouldn't be the worst idea to allow this boy to stay with them. He is older enough to take care of his basic needs without her constant supervision and Hermione could always help him.

"You can stay" said Jane. Harry was actually relieved to have a place to stay. Hermione and Jane were good people and he could feel it. He didn't know how but he could always tell people's true feelings and he felt nothing but good things coming from them.

"Thank you, Ms. Granger" said Harry.

"Thank you momma, Harry come with me to show you our room" said Hermione as she was about to drag Harry to her bedroom.

"Hermione don't drag the boy around like a doll. Also, I am heading to work and should be back in a few hours but could be later tonight. You will most likely have to fix your own dinner and don't be out after dark. I will call to check on you" said Jane.

"Okay bye mom" said Hermione giving her mother a hug and a kiss before dragging Harry to their bedroom. Jane laughed and shook her head before leaving. _'Maybe, Harry would be good for her. She does act too much like an adult' _thought Jane.

* * *

Hermione's room was simply furnished with a bed, a dresser, a nice size desk and chair, a lamp and piles of books. She also had what Harry remember seeing in muggle London, a computer if he remember correctly. The walls was all a beige colour along with her beding. It wasn't awe inspiring but it was nice.

"Well you will have to share the bed with me until we can get you one." said Hermione.

"Okay, you sure like to read" said Harry.

"Yes, most kids our age rather be outside playing but I love how read can transport you to another time and place" said Hermione.

"I feel the same way" said Harry.

"The bathroom is across the hall so you can shower. While you shower, I will fix us breakfast." said Hermione.

"Thanks" said Harry before heading into the bathroom. He took out stripped out of his soiled clothes, before turning on the shower. When the tempature was just right, he hoped in and cleaned his body thoroughly as he didn't want to know what he might slept in on a public bathroom floor. Once he felt he was completely clean, Harry took his magical pouch out of his jeans pouch and got out a new change of clothing, then he changed.

Leaving out of the bathroom, he found himself being drawn to the kitchen by a delicious smell. He noticed Hermione had set the table for them and saw that the places had toast and some fruit as soon would have sauage as Hermione was cooking it at the moment. Their was also glasses of orange juice.

When the sauage was done, Hermione placed it on their plates and sat down. They had been eating quietly when Hermione spoke.

"Harry, where did you get those clothes" asked Hermione knowing those clothes weren't in her house.

Harry could have killed himself as he forgot that he didn't have any luggage or belongings when he came and it would appear suspicious if he just changed into a completely different outfit.

"Well if I tell you, then you have to promise never to tell anyone because it is top secret" said Harry.

"I promised" said Hermione. Sensing nothing bad coming from her, Harry took his pouch out and pulled his dragon out. "How can you do that"

"Magic" said Harry.

"So magic is real" asked Hermione.

"Yes, I am a wizard" said Harry.

"I can sometimes do things like levitate items or even turn things into ice. So am I a wizard" asked Hermione.

"No, you are a witch and what you did was accidental magic. When we get our letters to a magic school at eleven we will be trained to use our magic" said Harry. "But you can't tell people about it because it is against the law"

"I can understand that as people would always want you to solve their problems with your magic or they will fear it so much they try to destroy you" said Hermione.

"That is right" said Harry.

"But can we practice magic now before entering a magic school. I would like better control over it because sometimes, I worry I will hurt someone when things happen around me" said Hermione.

"Sure we can, I got a book on how to do basic wandless magic and we would just be ahead of kids our age." said Harry.

Without realizing it, the two of them stuck up a friendship that would last a lifetime and would be tested in years to come. Harry would probably never realize that this friendship would be his saving grace from becoming some like Voldemort.


	9. Death, mourning and seeing past mistakes

Culls

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter nine

**Reread Chapter 8 as he has some major changes that will be important to the story.**

* * *

When Harry fled the Dursley's household, it was one of the smartest decisions of his life as not long afterwards three thuggish looking men showed up. The Dursleys were pulled from their sleep by these men. Now people wouldn't expect men like this to be coming to the house of such upstanding people but the Dursleys were far from that. Both Vernon and Petunia liked living way above their means and to keep doing it they had to do some questionable and illegal things. For example, Vernon had been stealing money from the company he worked for Grunnings and Petunia was stealing from the charities she was on the board of. For the longest, these things had went unnoticed but a few months back some people became suspicious of them and they had to replace the money. They didn't have that much money and didn't have anyone that would give it to them so they went to a loan shark.

Now they were making the payments they could but it wasn't enough for whoever they were indebt with and they were panicking when by some miracle Albus Dumbledore showed up. He was offering them a substantial amount of money to care for their for their nephew Harry. They agreed and thought their troubles would be over but they got a visit from their creditors. They were at the end of their rope but Vernon being a good salesperson was able to make a deal. The deal was that on August 2 that they would had over Harry and all their debts would be cleared.

Vernon looked down at the lifeless corpse of his wife and child, he felt rage at that stupid freak for running off. His last words before he was silence for good. _"This is all your fault, freak" _he screamed with some much rage it was frightening but his life was ended moments later as his intestines were ripped from his body and he was forced to bleed out.

Not to long afterwards, Severus was making his way to the Headmaster's office as he had received some news that Albus needed to hear. Walking into the Headmaster's office, he was happy to see that he was still here.

"Albus, I have some news you need to hear" said Severus urgently.

Albus noted the seriousness and urgency of his former student and realized that it wasn't good news.

"What is it, my boy" stated Albus.

"I got word from a few of my old contacts that the deatheaters have located the Potter boy. It appears that Petunia and her husband had gotten into debt with a deatheater loan shark and two weeks ago offered Harry Potter as payment." said Severus gravely. "Please tell you didn't take the boy to the Dursleys"

"Yes, yesterday evening. We must make haste and see can we stop this" said Dumbledore. He felt that something bad had happen and feared they wouldn't make it in time.

Aurors along with a few choice Order members arrived at the Dursleys residence and found it in flames as the muggles were trying to put it out. When the fire was finally pulled out, three bodies where discovered which belonged to the Dursleys but their was no sign of Harry.

* * *

After the news of what happened to the Dursleys, James Potter had went into his study. He couldn't believe that his little boy was gone. He knew that he hadn't been the best father to Harry lately but he still loved the boy. He thought that Lily's sister and her family would provide a nice stable environment for him. That in the muggle world, he could be his own person without always being compared to his sister and he would have a family that could devote more time to him. Especially when Rosie had to start her training to prepare her to face Voldemort in the future. He hated to think his little girl would most likely die at the hands of a sociopath and he was powerless to stop it.

Looking a family portrait taken a few months before the attack, James felt so much pain that he had lost one child and most likely lose another. He felt overwhelming guilt that he had sent his son to his death when all he was doing was thinking of what was best for him. He noticed how Remus and Sirius were giving him looks at his and Lily's appalling behavior toward Harry. Looking back, he felt disgusted with himself and realized that Harry's last memories of him would be of him being a monster to him. Maybe Snape was right about him thought James. Snape always said we Mauraders we bullying, arrogant bastards and would turn on each other even our families. Peter ended up turning on them and even saling them out to Voldemort. Dumbledore had just given them the Prophecy and told their three closests friends about it. Peter turned out to be the spy that was ratting out the Order to Voldemort and Peter was now rotting away at Azkaban for his betrayal.

So what did James deserve for his betrayal of Harry. He had hurt his son...the little boy he vowed to protect because he was angry about what Rosie had to face. He punished him for nothing more than being there.

"Maybe Snape was right, I am a monster" uttered James to no one.

* * *

Sirius did something he hadn't down since his last day at Hogwarts, get pissed arse drunk. He didn't remember how many bottles of firewhiskey he had drank but it helped numb the pain. When he was called to check out a deatheater attack in a muggle neighborhood, it was routine as some rogue and wannabe deatheaters were doing this as a way to keep terror going. Looking through the wreckage, he found the Dursleys and recognized Lily's sister. He knew those two weren't on what you say speaking terms but he knew it would hurt her. He had left the scene and arrived at the Potter's Manor to see that it was in a mess of sorts and they appeared to be packing up and leaving.

They told him that they had to go into hiding as Deatheaters were out for Rosie's blood. They chatted a little bit before Sirius broke the news about the Dursleys. They both seemed to have frozen up and looked more distressed than Sirius would have thought. It was moments later Sirius learnt why. They had sent Harry there for his safety. Now to say Sirius was mad was an understatement. He tore into both of them, calling them every name in the book beside children of God, he even punched James in his anger and stormed off before he did something he regret.

In his state Sirius was surprised he was able to apparated without splitching himself. Instead of going home, Sirius began to walk until he found a pub and decided to get a drunk as possible. Around closing time, Sirius began stumbling out of the place not caring where he was going or what happened to him.

He lost his cub and the world looked so bleak. He remembered when Harry was born and he had charmed the healer into letting him hold Harry before his parents. Harry was such a beautiful and sweet natured as a baby barely making a fuss unlike Rosie who was so much like James. He remembered a three months he had let Harry see his wand and tried to teach him magic. Harry had done magic by turning Albus' and Minerva's hair neon orange that they had a bit of a problem changing. He loved Rosie but he always had a closer bond to Harry.

Sirius was stumbling around until he feel into someone, he didn't care if they robbed him and murdered him afterwards as he felt so dead inside.

"Black, you bastard what in hell are you thinking" yelled a very irated Severus Snape.

"D'care jusss wan ta die" slurred Sirius.

"Honestly, you are pathetic. Can you at least stand as Albus would have my head if he dog ended up dead" snapped Severus.

"Whaaaaatevvverrrr" slurred Sirius. Rolling his eyes at the man's drunken antics, he pulled him up and walked him to his home that wasn't faraway. Severus was grumbling the whole time about just leaving him to die.


	10. Harry Found

Culls

Chapter 10

A/N: I rewrote this chapter a little to make it better.

Waking up the next day, Sirius was feeling like crap and felt that death would be a blessing. He was about to pray for it when he was made to drank something foul tasting that immediately made him feel better. Opening his eyes, he noticed that it didn't hurt and looked up seeing Severus Snape looking down at him.

"I see that the potion is working" said Severus.

"Yeah and it tasted awful" grimace Sirius as he still tasted in his mouth.

"If potion tasted good than it would give idiots like you and your friends reason to do even more stupid things" said Severus.

"Did you just make a joke" asked Sirius.

"Maybe but imbeciles like you rarely understand my type of humor" said Severus.

"I guess and thanks for last night and taking care me" said Sirius.

"Whatever but I need you to get up because Dumbledore wants us to look for the Potter boy" said Severus.

"But Harry is dead" said Sirius and pain fill his entire being thinking of his pup dead.

"Actually he is most likely alive as the deatheaters don't have him. They are searching for him so we have to be quick about it as they had a head start." said Severus.

"Why didn't you wake me up?" asked Sirius a bit upset.

"Well you needed to sleep off the large amount of liquor you drank and also they don't know the first thing about looking for a child in the muggle world." answered Severus.

"Okay," Sirius said feeling a little better.

After Sirius got himself right, him and Severus went to look for Harry in their animagus forms. Sirius was a large black dog and Severus was a wolf. Staring from near the Dursleys, the followed Harry scent to the park where they noticed he encounter someone else. They followed that followed that scent to a run-down looking neighborhood where the scent was still fresh and they detected deatheaters as well.

Severus had trouble keeping Sirius under control as he didn't want him to ruin their chances to surprise them and get Harry out alive. Sneaking over to the house they knew Harry and the deatheaters were located, they peeked into the window to see a woman being killed in front of Harry and a little. They decided to take action then and began attacking. They took the three deatheaters and was left with two frighten children who just witnessed their first murder.

"Are you two alright" said Sirius a bit shakily.

Harry looked up and noticed his Uncle Sirius and ran to him which Sirius opened his arms and hugged his godson as if his life depended on it.

Numbly, Hermione looked down at her mother's lifeless corpse. Jane had never really been a good mother and Hermione had basically raised herself but she was still her mother. Hermione loved Jane for the simple fact that she stayed while her father left. Her father didn't care about her or anything of the sorts but Jane did and Hermione would always be thankful for that. Her mother had even sacrificed herself to save them and Hermione realized that her mother loved her. Maybe not how she wanted or needed but Jane did love her.

Bending down, Hermione closed her mother's eyes and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

"Thank you, mum. And I love you too" said Hermione barely above a whisper but the other occupants in the room heard.

"How about you and Harry go gather your things" said Sirius.

"Okay" said Hermione in a monotone. She was in a state of shock so the events of the day wasn't fully registering with her at the moment and the other occupants in the room was thankful for that. Hermione headed toward her room with Harry following.

Once the children were gone, Sirius spoke.

"What are we going to do" asked Sirius.

"Contact the Aurors and Dumbledore" said Severus.

"I don't want anyone to know Harry is alive" said Sirius.

"Why" asked Severus.

"Honestly, and you have the nerve to call me think" said Sirius dodging Severus that almost slapped him. "Harry will always be endanger as he is Rosie's brother. If everyone was led to believe he died than he will be safe"

"But it won't be much of a secret if you go off and tell his parents" said Severus.

"I wasn't planning on it. If Harry hadn't ran off he would have been dead because of them. I have noticed how they have been treating him over the years but had no legal way to take him away." said Sirius.

"It is hard to fact a death as they could look at the family tree and see he is still alive" said Severus.

"Not if he was blood adopted by two people." said Sirius smirking.

"No...I am not helping you" said Severus.

"Please, Harry is just a sweet little boy that deserves a real chance at a happy life. We can give it" said Sirius.

"Okay, but we need to do this quickly" said Severus pulling out a potion vial.

"You actually carry that potion on you" asked Sirius.

"I am always prepared" said Severus.

"Such a boy scout of you" teased Sirius.

"Oh, shut up and get the children" said Severus.

Gathering up the children, Sirius and Severus had a serious discussion with them.

"Listen we need you ask you two something" asked Sirius.

"What" asked Harry.

"Girl, do you have any other family" asked Severus.

"No" said Hermione.

"Do you two want to be our children in blood" asked Sirius.

"You mean like if you had a baby" asked Hermione.

"Yeah, do you want to" said Sirius.

Harry always loved his Uncle Sirius. Even more so than his parents as they didn't care for him much. He trusted his uncle and would love him for him to be his father. Hermione had no one beside her mother, who was now dead. Jane wasn't really the best mother but she was all she had. If Harry agreed than she would as well.

"Yes," said Harry followed by a yes from Hermione.

"Good" said Sirius. Taking out the Potion vial. A drop of blood from each person was put in the potion and the two children down it. Severus placed a sleeping charm on Harry and Hermione as it can be quite painful changing.

Sirius apparated the two children back to his flat before he came back. Sirius and Severus made sure to stage the murder right along with altering the deatheaters memories of what happen.

By the time, they made it home they were thankful the children were still sleeping. They didn't allow themselves to worry over what their little ruse was going to turn into. They were thinking about how they were giving two children the best childhood possible.

Days later, Hermione found herself in this entirely different world. She had come with Harry to stay in the magical world. Everyone had been really nice to her and stuff but Hermione rather be alone. She was staying with Harry, Sirius and Severus at a flat in London. Sirius and Severus was worked together as Aurors and were partners. They argued a lot but Hermione figured it was their way of dealing with each other as they seemed close to her.

Hermione was heading back to her room when she heard Harry crying. Walking up to the door of his room, she peeked inside and saw that Harry was with his Uncle Sirius and they were talking. She knew it was wrong to spy but she couldn't help herself as she was very curious.

"Uncle Sirius, it is my fault Jane died. If I haven't came there, they would be safe" sadly Harry admitted feeling bad for his new friend.

"Harry, it wasn't your fault" shouted Hermione coming into the room. She wasn't going to allow her first friend to wallow in guilt over something he had no control over.

"But if I hadn't came with you than you and your mother would be safe and she would be alive" said Harry.

"Listen, you couldn't have known and who is to say we would not have encounter those people. Anyways, it is my fault because I made you come with me and I wasn't about to let you wander off on you on. Those people are evil and it wouldn't have mattered if we had you or not. They wanted to kill us and they would do it. So stop your blubbering and come explain more about the magical world or I will be really mad at you" said Hermione.

"Okay" said Harry clambering out of Sirius lap and making his way over to Hermione.

"Now explain why do witches and wizards think it is a smart idea to travel by fireplace" asked Hermione thinking it was absurd.

"I don't know but I hate it as I always fall out" said Harry walking away with Hermione.

Sirius was happy to see that while he had try for hours to calm his godson, a word from his new friend mad everything alright.

Getting up, he walked to the kitchen where he found Severus enjoying his lunch.

"Black, what are you so happy about" said Severus and he told him about what happened between Harry and Hermione. "Well children can always figure things out easier than adults in certain matters. Don't you remember being so mad at someone when you were little and the next minute you were friends"

"Yeah, it just I tried for hours to calm him but a few words from Hermione made the difference" said Sirius.

"Well he was feeling guilt and most likely thought she hated him so was understandably upset" said Severus.

"I agree but what are we going to do with the two of them." said Sirius.

"As I doubt Harry would want to go back to his parents and Hermione doesn't have any family. As they are old enough to go to school, we do that during the day and found a sitter when we can't look after them" said Severus.

"You make things seem so simple but I don't know if I can raise a child let alone two. I don't want to screw up" said Sirius.

"Well that is what I am here for and I will not let you screw up to much." said Severus.

"Why are you helping and what are you getting out of it" said Sirius a little suspicious.

"Well I always wanted to see a Potter in Slytherin and it would kill Potter if his son was one" said Severus with a smirk.

"You are evil but after what they put Harry through, he would deserve a Slytherin for a son" said Sirius.

"This is going to be fun" said Severus.

AN: Sirius and Severus are Aurors and partners. They live together and over their time as Aurors have become good friends. Severus had reasons to still not like James that will be revealed lately. Remus is off working with werewolves and will be MIA for some time.


	11. Remus return and Christmas at Ministry

Chapter 11

"Please tell me, you didn't kidnap Harry and a girl. And then fake their deaths" said Remus for the millionth time.

"Moony, calm down and let us explain" said Sirius pushing the werewolf into the sofa. "Listen, this is for the best. Harry would never have a normal, happy and safe life being the brother of Rosie. And Hermione had no family and it works for the best"

"I agree with you about Harry's life but what about James and Lily thinking there son is dead" said Remus.

"It is not like they care. You didn't hear the things Hermione told me that Harry told her about his life with James, Lily and Rosie. It wasn't pleasant at all. He was unloved and mistreated. They care only about Rosie. I mean they placed Harry with Lily's sister and family. They knew how much Petunia and Vernon detested magic and to place Harry there was unthinkable." said Sirius angry.

"They most likely thought the Dursleys would treat him like family. He is a child so innocent" said Remus.

"You know that bigotry doesn't see age. They locked him in a tiny cupboard under the stairs minutes after he was left in their care. If he had not ran away just hours after it happen, he would have been given over to deatheaters and killed. They sold him to pay off their debts" said Sirius.

"I realized that and I want to help you. You are going to need it if we are going to keep up with the ruse" said Remus. "So have you even figured out a back story or any way to explain why you suddenly became the father of two children"

"Yes, they are Regulus and Serena's twins Henry Sirius and Hermione Vega Black. They will only be a year older so it will help to disguise everything." said Sirius.

"Didn't Serena die during childbirth along with the children" said Remus.

"Yes but only you, me and Severus knows that and anyone else who knew is now dead. Since both Regulus and Serena died under mysterious circumstances, my mother thought it best to keep them hidden away. When she died a few months ago, Severus and myself found we had a niece and nephew" said Sirius.

"But wouldn't one of you family members like Narcissa know this is a lie because they didn't show up on the family books" said Remus.

"As my mother was the Head of the Black family, she had the authority to place or take someone name off the family. And I have conveniently placed their names back on it" said Sirius.

"Anyways with the Blacks being known for their paranoia it wouldn't be too odd. Also remember most pureblood children are not seen until they are between 6 and 11. We will just show up with them in Diagon Alley around Christmas time so people get a glimpse of them"

"That seems reasonable but they will need to know how to act like someone raised with your mother's teaching their whole life" said Remus.

"Then it is a good thing that I was raised by her and know how they need to act" said Sirius.

* * *

It was the first Christmas for the newly formed Snape-Black family. Sirius and Severus were doing really well so far with the children despite a few difficulties, like Harry's guilt over Jane's death and Hermione withdrawing a bit after witnessing Jane's death. The two men did their best to help the children. Now it was time for their first test, they needed to convince people that they were really a family and they decided to bring the children to the Christmas Party at the Ministry of Magic.

"Now listen, be careful what you say and if you are unsure forge ignorance or try to get Sirius or mine attention" said Severus for like the millionth time.

"We are not stupid so stop repeating yourself" said Hermione. She had become prone to moodiness that resembled Sirius behavior as a child. It was part of the side-effects of going through a blood adoption. You start taking on quirks and the such of the family. Lets just say neither of the adults was liking this part very much.

"I really am getting tired of your lip little princess" said Severus.

"But Uncle Seven that is all part of my charm" said Hermione giving him her best innocent look.

"You are not very funny" said Severus.

"You love me all the more" said Hermione.

"Yes, I do princess" said Severus. "Now lets going and where is Sirius"

"Right behind you, old chap" said Sirius. "And have the demons been fully instructed" Sirius was teasing. He knew Severus had been going over the plan with the child for the better part of an hour.

"Fine, Uncle Sirius but I don't think Uncle Seven think we can pull it off" said Hermione.

"Can't you stop with that ridiculous nickname" said Severus.

"Well…no" teased Hermione.

"Uncle Severus at least it is better than when she was calling you Rusty. And remember that seven is a very powerful magical number so she is really complimenting you" assured Harry.

"Yeah right" said Severus.

"Well lets get to the party because I can't wait to show off my dance moves" said Sirius.

"You mean you imitating a monkey" joked Severus.

"Ha ha very funny but I am a great dancer and could teach you a thing or two" said Sirius picking up Hermione and spinning around with her.

Giggling, "See Uncle Serious is a fabulous dancer" said Hermione.

"Poor Harry look at what we are stuck with" said Severus picking up Harry.

"I see them" said Harry.

"Now lets apparate with the children as I want to get them back before bedtime" said Severus.

"I thought you said that we get to stay up late" said Harry.

"You will but I rather not stay around the people at the Ministry too long as I don't like politicians" said Severus.

"But I thought your best friend was one" said Harry.

"Yes, unfortunately he is but it does come in handy at times" said Severus.

"Okay" said Harry a bit unsure but knew that his Uncle Severus wasn't wrong as he always seemed to be right. Much to Sirius' ignorance.

Sirius with Hermione and Harry with Severus, the four apparated to the Ministry of Magic for the Annual Christmas Ball. Where the party was being held it was decorated like a winter wonder land. The place was filled people wearing their finest.

"Sirius, Severus and who might these two loves be" said Stan Graves a fellow Auror.

"This is our nephew Henry and our niece Hermione" said Severus simply.

"So I am finally allowed to meet Reggie and Rena's children" said Stan.

"Yes," said Severus.

"Hello Hermione and Harry, my name is Stan Graves." said the jolly man giving the two a handshake.

"So how is Ashley" asked Sirius.

"She is fine and should be around here somewhere." said Stan.

"Well I am behind you" said Ashley.

"Well good" said Stan pulling Ashley to his side. "Ashley, meet Henry and Hermione Black. These are Reggie and Rena's children"

"It is nice to meet you two and shame on you two for keeping such adorable children hidden away" said Ashley.

"That is the reason why because we couldn't be sharing attention with those two" said Sirius.

"You are so vain" said Ashley.

The spoke with Ashley, Stan and a few other of their coworkers and people at the ministry before they were pulled over to Albus Dumbledore.

"Severus and Sirius, who might these two be" asked the old wizard.

"Henry and Hermione, Regulus and Serena's children" said Sirius.

"I didn't think you two would keep them hidden away for so long" said Albus.

"We thought it necessary" said Sirius.

"I understand" said Albus. Regulus had died under mysterious circumstances and it found that Serena had been poisoned which killed her and her children.

"Are you Santa and if so why are you so skinny" asked Hermione.

"Well I gain all that weight when I eat all that milk and cookies at Christmas. That is when most people see me" said Albus.

"Why do your eyes twinkle" asked Harry.

"Magic" said Albus.

"Can you make our eyes twinkle like yours" asked Harry.

"Maybe someday but not now. So how are you two enjoying the party" asked Albus.

"It is fun and we met a lot of people. I especially like Mr. Malfoy. He was really nice" said Harry.

"And had really pretty hair. I wish my hair was like that" said Hermione.

"So they meet Lucius and his family" asked Albus.

"Yes, he was a bit upset with us for not tell him about the children." said Sirius.

"He said he was sending us seven years worth of Christmas presents to make up for not getting anything from him over the years" said Harry.

"I expect you will be getting a lot of presents" said Albus.

"I hope. I really want a broom and a potion kit" said Harry.

"I want a self-updating Hogwarts: A History and a broom as well" said Hermione.

"I will see that you get those" said Albus.

"Thank you, Santa" said Hermione and Harry.

By the time they left the party Sirius and Severus considered it to be a success. People believed their story easily.

"So is Mr. Malfoy really sending us seven years worth of presents" asked Harry.

"Most certainly" said Severus.

"So is Santa really going to get us what we asked him for" said Hermione.

"Yes" said Severus.

Questions like that went on for a while until Sirius and Severus was able to retire the two children to bed.

"See told you those two could pull it off" said Sirius.

"I knew that but wanted to make sure" said Severus.

"You are such a worry-wart. Relax sometimes" said Sirius.

"With you being so relax someone has to worry" said Severus.

"Whatever, Severus, I am off to bed" said Sirius.

"A bit early isn't it" said Severus.

"Yeah but those two are going to be up really early for the next few days as Christmas is in five days" said Sirius.

"I actually wished Christmas was tomorrow" groaned Severus thinking about the fact they would have to deal with two overexcited children for the next few days. It was good as they were acting more their age but it was going to seriously cut into their sleep.

"Me too" said Sirius.

* * *

A/N: Had to bring Remus back love his character too much. He will be bring a surprise next chapter.


End file.
